Vanessa Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) Hey everyone, my name is Vanessa. My son dpc told me I should sign up and get advice and hopefully some encouragement. I'm looking forward to MattM's input. I'm 51 and completely out of shape. Over the last 8 yrs I've put on 20lbs and have really let myself go. Now I'm back in the gym with my son and working out. I'm appalled at how out of shape I really am. Anyway, one thing that is limiting is that I broke my ankle and shattered my heal bone back in 1984. My left foot has limited flexing and extending motions. Unfortunately, squats and lunges are out. I am lifting though and doing some cardio. I really need to lose weight. My diet is horrible btw. I did the prowler today with 100lbs and thought I was going to die. It felt good though to work that hard. I'm going to keep a log here of my workouts. The main advice I need is on my diet. Any input would be greatly appreciated! Edited January 26, 2013 by Vanessa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 26, 2013 Author Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) 1/7/13 First workout Legs Leg Press Machine 60 x15 75 x12 90 x10 105 x6 105 x6 Leg Curl 30 x10 40 x10 50 x10 Back extentions 3x15 bodyweight abs 1/10/13 Push Push ups 20 total Chest Press Machine 25 x15 30 x10 30 x15 DB Shoulder press 10 x10 10 x10 15 x10 Tricep extensions 30 x15 40 x10 40 x10 1/13/13 Pull Pulldown 35 x12 45 x12 55 x8 60 x8 Barbell Row 30 x10 50 x15 60 x10 60 x10 Seated Row 3x60x10 face pul 60 x15 2x50x15 1/15/13 Legs Leg Press 2x75x10 90x10 105 x8 120 x6 Leg curl 30 x10 40 x10 50 x10 65 x5 - killed me back extension 3x15 bodyweight abs 1/18/13 Push Push ups 20 total Chest Press 30 x12 45 x10 45 x10 60 x8 used different machine, so the weight increments were different DB shoulder press 2x10x10 15x10 Tricep extension 30 x10 40x8 40x8 30x6 1/23/13 Pull Pulldown 40 x12 45 x12 55 x12 65x8 DB row 10x10 2x15x10 switched from barbell row to DB row today seated row 60 x10 2x45x10 1/25/13 Leg Press 90x10 105x10 120x8 135x6 Leg curl 35 x10 45 x10 55 x9 Glute kickback machine 15 x10 20 x10 25 x10 back extensions 3x15 bodyweight After all of these workouts I did some sort of cardio. Today (1/26/13) dpc introduced me to the prowler. I hated it more than anything, but it worked better than anything else. I'm now going to do that more often as well as swim. Edited January 26, 2013 by Vanessa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GotAGrip Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 Hi, welcome to the forum. Sucks to hear about your bad ankle and well done for findnig ways to work around it. Deadlifts are probably the best compound movement for weight loss, after squats of course. I actually like to think I know quite a bit about weight loss - tell me about your average daily diet. Gonna go watch a movie now, will check back tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 26, 2013 Author Share Posted January 26, 2013 Thank you for the support. My diet involves a lot of eating out. Things that are bad for you. Burgers, pizza, tacos and boneless wings (breaded of course). I need to start cooking more, but I'm not the best cook. When I do cook my son wants pasta, which I end up eating because it's easier than cooking two things. A friend of mine made some great veggies last night with pork chops. I did get the recipe for the squash and cauliflower because they were so good. Hopefully, I'll make them. :-) Any suggestions are appreciated. I really need to lose weight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 Hello! From what Dylan tells me this should be one heck of a log to follow! Your son is a pretty good friend of mine, I can see where he gets his unique sense of humor from your log title haha. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 You requested some diet advice, so don't mind if I do! 1. Use really small plates and glasses when you eat. Its psychology at worj 2. Drink a gallon of water a day. Sounds like alot but you should trust me on this one. 3. Avoid restraunts. Prepare 99% of your food. 4. Eat more protein. It has a higher satiety rating than carbs or fats 5. Eat more fiber. Same reason as above. 6. Eat breakfast. Always. 7. Drink coffee or green tea. Caffeine can be your friend. 8. Eat at least 3 meals a day, spaced 4 hrs apart. 9. Weigh yourself once a week in the morning on the same day. No more. 10. Make a bet with Dylan about your rate of weight loss. I don't care whats at stake just do it 11. Get 6-8 hours of sleep every night. 12. Don't skip workouts, and of course keep logging on here! It will make you accountable! Regards, Matt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 You requested some diet advice, so don't mind if I do!1. Use really small plates and glasses when you eat. Its psychology at worj 2. Drink a gallon of water a day. Sounds like alot but you should trust me on this one. 3. Avoid restraunts. Prepare 99% of your food. 4. Eat more protein. It has a higher satiety rating than carbs or fats 5. Eat more fiber. Same reason as above. 6. Eat breakfast. Always. 7. Drink coffee or green tea. Caffeine can be your friend. 8. Eat at least 3 meals a day, spaced 4 hrs apart. 9. Weigh yourself once a week in the morning on the same day. No more. 10. Make a bet with Dylan about your rate of weight loss. I don't care whats at stake just do it 11. Get 6-8 hours of sleep every night. 12. Don't skip workouts, and of course keep logging on here! It will make you accountable! Regards, Matt She actually does a lot of these already. She never shuts up about carbs though.. so could you please tell her everything you know about carbs lol. Or at least.. tell her what she needs and doesnt need. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 Ok hahaha one of those huh? Well Vanessa despite what you might have heard carbohydrates are a vital and useful source of energy for weight lifters. Our muscles use stores of carbohydrates in our liver and muscles to do work. If you remove them from your diet you are putting your body into a position to utilize alternative sources of stored energy such as fat, protein components, or ketone bodies which are much less efficient. I would recommend that you not stress so much about carbs, and rather focus on reducing calories as a whole. There is always more info on carbs, and i would ask your son about pre and post workout nutrition. He and I have talked extensively on the topic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 So.. just to clarify.. if she were to say... ohh idk... go down to 10 carbs a day. that would be bad, yes? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted January 27, 2013 Share Posted January 27, 2013 Very bad. The brain requires 120-130 carbs a day, for starters. It will also negatively impact your stamona in training, your mood, and even your breath haha. *stamina Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 27, 2013 Author Share Posted January 27, 2013 Hey Matt! Thank you for the good advice. Dylan has nothing but good things to say about you and that is rare for him. Also, having met you I know that you are incredibly knowledgable where working out and diet are concerned. I drink a lot of unsweetend ice tea and drink quite a bit of coffee. Regular tea, not green. Is that ok? I do need to eat smaller portions and I promise to reevaluate my views on carbs. That being said, I consume way too many carbs. I promise not to cut them out of my diet, but I absolutely need to cut down my intake. I will start drinking more water, especially before meals and I will make an effort to increase my protein and fiber intake. I also promise to listen to Dylan if he stops calling me Fatty McGee. I'm kidding, he just calls me fat. But, he does have my best interest at heart and he is showing infinite patience with me. I will continue to post on this site and would welcome any and all suggestions you have. Thanks, Vanessa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniel reinard Posted January 27, 2013 Share Posted January 27, 2013 Welcome to the board. Awesome you're after a new you. May I suggest making meals in 2-3 day batches? I struggle with time and making seperate meals for the kiddo myself. The solution has been to make it in large quantities so you have the ideal meal on hand for a few days. Frees up alot of time and prevents you from eating the foods that go against the diet. Typically we eat junk just ecause it is fast and easy. I make fish in the oven in a large quantity and make alot of rice. Then I just use the frozen veggies steamer bags since those are just 5 min the microwave. I try to pick stuff that is the healthiest of course. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwwm Posted January 27, 2013 Share Posted January 27, 2013 +1 on the steamed veggies. I buy broccolli, etc. at the store, and when I want them with a meal, I pop them in a rice steamer (which we've never used for rice btw) . A few minutes of steam while you're cooking the main protein, and voila! Also, since you have a bum ankle/heal - kettlebell swings would be a great way to burn calories as well. Start light, keep the back in good alignment, hinge at the hips, etc. Three or four sessions a week will jump start the metabolism. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 27, 2013 Author Share Posted January 27, 2013 Thank you for the responses and making me feel so welcome. I know I don't fit the average profile of people using this board! I like the meal idea a lot. That would eliminate the excuse that I don't have time to make a healthy dinner. Also, the kettle bell swings. I really need to jump start my metabolism and lose this belly fat. I'm thinking it wouldn't be a bad idea to go on some sort of diet just to help get things moving along. I have no idea what kind of diet though. I do have to say that pushing that prowler was a great workout today. I seriously thought I might throw up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 27, 2013 Author Share Posted January 27, 2013 PUSH DAY: 20 push ups (these are modified) DB Shoulder Press: 10x10 10x12 15x11 Side DB Raise 10x7 5x12 8x12 This was the first time I did these and had to adjust the weight. Boy were these hard! Front DB Raise 8x12 8x12 10x15 Once again, first time. I need to figure out the weights. Tricep Extensions: 30x10 40x10 40x10 Stairmaster Hey Matt, I incorporated the two dumbbell exercises you suggested, but would like to continue with the chest press. I feel like I really need to do something for my chest other than stupid push ups, which I hate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Scibelli Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 Consider sticking with the push-ups, anytime you can use your own body weight to do an exercise you'll end up getting more bang for your buck. When you do a push-up, you'll not only be working your chest and tri's but also your abs, glutes and all the other muscles keeping you in that plank position. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 Hey Vanessa, the reason I would suggest that you stick with pushups for a while is to develop a strength base while the dumbbell exercises following it balance out the strength differences between your left and right arm. How many modified or regular pushups can you do in one set? Some other options to consider would be unilateral DB bench press, a DB bench press on a swiss ball, or incline DB bench press. Both of these called for increased coordination and balance, which at your level of training is important. Nice work all over, Matt 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GotAGrip Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 (edited) Hey, sorry I didn't check back - for some reason it didn't subscribe to this thread when I posted on it (it normally does) and it didn't tell me I had a reply lol. I agree with Matt's advice, well 99% of it because I am slightly pedantic lol. It's true that an athlete and weight lifters need carbs but I think the timing is the most important part. When you wake up your body is in "fat burning" mode and will remain in that state until you eat a lot of carbs (i.e. Most cereals and other breakfasts). At this time (pre-breakfast) your growth hormone is very high while insulin levels are low. As soon as your body gets carbs shoved into it, the fat burning "switch" is activated and your body releases huge amounts of insulin, allowing an influx of nutrients into your muscles. Insulin is a very interesting hormone and is pretty anabolic in the fact that it preserves muscle mass, like Matt said. The down side though is it stunts your growth hormone, and can slow down fat burning. A very simple way of explaining it is with the "bucket" analogy. Imagine your liver and your muscles holding two seperate buckets, the liver being the smallest. Now, incase you don't already know - fructose from fruit predominantly fills up the liver glycogen which can't hold too much and therefore is likeliest to overspill into fat storage. I am not saying eating fruit is bad, but it is definitely not a good idea if you haven't exercised beforehand - I feel the fruit for breakfast is asking for trouble with diabetes and fat-storage. As for other forms of sugar, mainly glucose - this predominantly fills up the muscle glycogen and this is what we want to achieve - especially after a tough workout. The muscle glycogen bucket is a lot bigger and can hold a lot more; think potatoes, rice and other starchy carbs. Again, waking up and eating this is pointless, the body isn't crying out for glucose in the same way as it would be AFTER a workout. So, here is the trick - wake up, wait as long as you can before you eat breakfast (from the words "Break" and "Fast", not from the modern word "eatassoonasyoubloodycan"). Then, try not to eat too many carbs when you do eat UNLESS you do a workout first - if you workout before your first meal then eat carbs by all means - your body will be grateful. Obviously this isn't an efficient way to bulk because you need a constant supply of insulin to push glucose into the muscles and into fat-storage (inevitable), but for weight loss - keep them carbs after a workout when you have emptied your "buckets" lol. Like I say, I agree with Matt - you will definitely be on the right path of you listen to him, just wanted to add my two cents. Edit: Check out the book "convict conditioning" - that way, if you haven't got any weights handy and you feel like you are about to eat a naughty meal (takeaways etc) then you can bust out a quick workout beforehand - lessening the damage. Edited January 28, 2013 by GotAGrip 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
climber511 Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 Weight loss = food journal. YOU CANNOT OUTWORK A BAD DIET - it's too easy to eat too much in today's world. Spend your time making good food (and drink) choices and good meals - this is perhaps even more important than what you do working out. Look into a diet that you can continue for a lifetime such as Weight Watchers (there are other good ones as well) - not just one that will give you a quick weight loss and a quicker rebound. Healthy weight control is a lifestyle of sensible intake versus what you burn via your personal metabolic rate and workouts. Good Luck to you. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 29, 2013 Author Share Posted January 29, 2013 Thank you everyone for the support and great advice. I will continue doing push ups even though I hate them so much. I know that they are one of the best things I can do. I can do 20 modified or 5 real ones Matt. DPC, my son, said that I have probably given the impression that I am huge. I suppose I'm not, I'm just really big for me. Losing 20lbs would be plenty. I think I just need to be smart about carbs. I work 2 jobs and one is at an Italian restaurant...NOT GOOD FOR ME! However, that job is coming to an end next week and that should help. Also, I need to lay off eating out. It's just too easy to order a burrito from my favorite Mexican restaurant. Also, I do know that Climber 511 is right. I can have a great workout and ruin it as soon as I get home. Matt, I'm going to have Dylan show me the other DB exercises you suggested. Tomorrow is pull day so I'll post my workout. Thanks everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mephistopholes Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Deadlifts. Deadlifts. Deadlifts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 She unfortunately cna't do deadlifts with her ankle, but rack pulls aren't out of the question, or romanian dead lift's. I've just yet to teach her those. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mephistopholes Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Oh... My bad. Haha. Well I'm sure you'll find something that will operate as a work-around. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanessa Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 1/29/13 Assisted pull ups: 22 @ 120lbs Pull downs: 50x12; 60x12; 65x10 Dumbbell rows: 15x12x3 reps (try 20lbs next week) Face pulls: 50x15x2 reps 60x15 Prowler: 90lbs@approx 44yds x 2 What's a Romanian dead lift??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpc Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 When she did the pull ups, it was 22 total reps, not just one set of 22 reps. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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