Last Week's Workouts

Since I haven't posted any details of my workouts in a while, here's an excerpt of what I did last week. In fact, starting last week, I decided to pair two bodyparts together and work them in superset fashion. This will help me get a longer workout at a slightly higher intensity, both of which will be beneficial to my anaerobic and aerobic conditioning.

Mon - Walk/Jog (20 minutes)
Tue - Quads/Chest (45 minutes)
Wed - AM: Prenatal Yoga (45 minutes); PM: Shoulders (30 minutes)
Thu - Back/Hamstrings (45 minutes), stretching (10 minutes)
Fri - Bis/Tris/Calves (30 minutes), followed by Arc trainer cardio (15 minutes)

It's a Boy!!!!!

Just got back from the US appointment this morning. Yay, it's a little baby boy and we are so excited! I was right on the guess, and so were 99% of our friends and family. About 30 boy guesses and 1-2 girl guesses! Here are a few pics - the entire album is on my Facebook page though.

Back from Florida

Dave and I had a great time visiting the family in Florida. While we only spent 4 1/2 days there, it was quality time with my Mom, sis, her hubby and my nephew. We are ready to leave VA for good and relocate to the sunshine state!

Here's a pic from our adventures at Washington Oaks Park near Palm Coast, FL.

Baby is Kicking!

Starting about 3-4 days ago I began feeling faint little kicks. To explain for those of you who haven't been there, it feels like someone flicking you with their finger, only from the inside out! It also sometimes reminds me of when you go over a speed bump or a hill on a roller coaster, that stomach wave up and down feeling, only not quite as strong. Now I notice the kicks nearly every time I sit down for a meal or lay on the couch for a nap. They come in series of 3-10 in a row! It's awesome!!! :D

18 1/2 Weeks

Feeling great - my best so far! The past 2 weeks I've experienced more energy and no more morning sickness - yay! I have noticed it's been a bit difficult to sleep (to stay asleep, that is). I spontaneously wake up 2-3 times throughout the night, plus the 1-2 times that my uterus-pressed bladder SCREAMS to me, lol.

I've also just recently noticed the ligaments in my lower abdomen are stretching. I've felt the ligaments in the sides of my back and sides of my abs stretching for about a month now. Just this week, my joints have gotten really loose and hyper-mobile due to the relaxin (which allows the hips to spread for delivery). If I stand and twist I will feel/hear a knee or ankle crack/pop. Very weird!

Since I feel good, I'm eating better and exercising more. Each weight workout takes me about 35-40 minutes. This week, my scheduled looked like this:

Mon: Shoulders
Tue: Triceps, Calves
Wed: Hamstrings, Biceps
Thu: Back
Fri: Quads, Calves

I typically go for a long walk with my husband 1-2 times weekly and/or spend an hour or two doing yardwork. That's my "cardio"!

My next prenatal appointment is this coming Monday. Will have the urinalysis to check for sugar and protein, weight, blood pressure, and fetal heartbeat check.

15 Week Photo

Here's a progress pic for you all. I have the full set on my facebook gallery. This is the most recent taken 3 weeks ago at 15 weeks.

Pregnancy Update - 15 Weeks

I will be at 15 weeks tomorrow! Sorry I haven't blogged in a while. Thank you all so much for your congrats and well wishes. :) It was awesome to celebrate my first Mother's Day and hubby took me out to lunch and a shopping spree for maternity clothes, lol!

My 6th through 10th week I dealt with a lot of morning sickness and fatigue. 8 hours of sleep each night plus a 2-3 hour nap during the day (love my job as a PT!). I had to eat whatever I could, and I was HUNGRY! Forget chicken breasts and veggies, lol, I was eating ravioli, breaded chicken patties and canned and frozen fruit. Now that the queasiness is gone and fatigue has lessened, I am back to near-normal off-season eating habits and am working out about 3 times a week.

Just had a prenatal appt. Monday and I weighed in at 166! The most I've ever weighed, and to think it will go up at least another 15 lbs. is kind of just funny. I'm averaging about 5 lbs. per month so far. I did start at 150 and 16% bodyfat so a lot was dieting rebound at first, especially with the strict and sudden diet changes I had to make to hold down food and get enough calories for baby.

In another month I can find out what the baby's gender is! Dave and I will be taking trips to see all our family this summer, while I'm still feeling well in the 2nd trimester, and before lockdown begins, ha ha. California, Florida and Pittsburgh are on our schedule.

I'm having a baby!

My 2009 plans have been decided for me! This will be the first year since I began competing in 2003 that I won't be suiting up, strapping on the heels and spraying on the tan. It's a bit sad but it is more than made up for by the coming of our first little bundle of joy!

I became pregnant around the beginning of February. I was well into dieting mode and only 9 weeks from my first show of the season. I had just weighed in, checked bodyfat and taken pictures (149 lbs., 16.6%). Three days later, I found out I was pregnant.

I will be journaling my mood, emotions, training, diet, etc. on my blog for the next 8 months.

Weeks 1 – 4:

I felt great and like I said, really didn’t know I was pregnant until about the 5th week. The only symptoms I noticed were during week 3 when I had extreme fatigue, low back pain, slight nausea, hot flashes and constipation. But since all of those symptoms could also be attributed to contest dieting and an extreme heat wave of weather, I was only mildly suspicious! Those symptoms subsided and it took almost 2 more weeks for me to find out I was pregnant, of course when I missed my period.

Week 5 – 6:

Week five was ok, but fatigue was beginning to set in. I started making initial changes to my diet and training this week. I stopped caffeine cold turkey (but a week later, resumed it in less than 200mg daily allotments) and added much-needed extra carbs due to the low blood sugar associated with pregnancy (and believe me, I noticed!). I also added calcium and iron to my supplement plan, in addition to my USANA multi-vitamin/mineral and sublingual liquid B complex.

Week 6 has been the worst! Constant nausea (though no vomiting) and insane fatigue – worse than dieting/training for a fitness competition. And believe me, if someone told me it was harder than that, I wouldn’t have believed them! I go in for my initial appointment in an hour. I need the reassurance that I’m doing everything right and not taking anything that may be harmful to baby…

Got to see my baby today! He/she’s a little kidney bean – soooooo cute. The baby’s only about 1 cm in length, but I got to see his/her heart beating very rapidly. It’s confirmed that I’m 6 weeks and 6 days… due date November 3!

NPC launches Bikini Division, plus rule changes

The NPC just had their board of governors meeting at the Nationals weekend, Nov. 22. The new rule changes for fitness and figure are out, as well as the announcement of a new division, bikini. I'll provide links to both news releases, but the bottom line is this:

-Fitness and Figure will no longer be competing in a 1-piece suit (IFBB will retain the 1-piece suit however). Figure will consist of 1 round - the 2 piece suit. Fitness will consist of 2 rounds - the 2 piece suit and routine round.

-The new bikini division will be available at local and regional shows per the promoter's discretion. The top 5 places at any national-qualifying event qualify for any of 6 bikini pro qualifiers in 2009. The IFBB will launch the pro bikini division in 2010 or 2011.

I am told the look for Bikini will be like that of the Flex magazine model search winners from the Olympia. Less muscularity but still presenting a lean and athletic look. Balance, shape, complexion, beauty and skin tone are all factors. Rack bikinis may be worn and heels must be worn. Jewelry may be worn. The round consists of a model turn (front turn and back turn) and a comparison round (front turn and back turn).

I will be offering training and consulting services for the new Bikini division as part of my Fit Figures Competition Team. I will be integrating training and diet differences, as well as suit selection and presentation, for this new round in all of my workshops and posing classes. Please email me if you'd like to talk about preparing for a bikini competition in 2009. This is a great way to break in to the NPC and IFBB for girls that struggle with gaining the amount of muscle required for Fitness or Figure.

NPC Bikini Division Rules

NPC Rule Changes for 2009 (Fitness/Figure)

The 2009 schedule is not yet posted, but the promoter's sanction request date is Dec. 13, so look for the schedule in early January.

This Week's Workouts

Gotta post it all to solidify it into my schedule! I've had a tough time making all my workouts lately... not finding time or simply making excuses. I may switch to morning workouts next week just to be sure something doesn't "come up" later in the day. Gotta train!!!

11/24 Mon: PM - Quads & Abs
11/25 Tue: AM - Routine Practice (75 min.); PM - Hams & Calves
11/26 Wed: AM - Chest & Tris; PM - Cardio (outdoor run)
11/27 Thu: AM - Cardio (leaf-raking?)
11/28 Fri: AM - Back & Biceps; PM - Cardio (leaf-raking or treadmill intervals)
11/29 Sat: AM - Power & Shoulders

And there it is! Thursday is my normal rest day, just a clarification - I am not taking it off due to Thanksgiving. I do want to make sure & get all my training in this week, cardio included, to minimize the effects of the added calories. I also plan on getting right back on track with diet on Friday to pick up where I left off.

My Thanksgiving Menu

OK, here it is - my Thanksgiving menu for two!

Herbed Turkey Breast
Mashed Potatoes
Green Bean Macadamia Nut Casserole
Stuffing
Pumpkin Cheesecake

The "healthier" items on my menu are of course the turkey breast (white meat only), the green bean casserole and the pumpkin cheesecake. The casserole is a spin on the classic version. This one nixes the cream of mushroom soup and french fried onions and adds in olive oil, shallots, garlic and sauteed macadamia nuts - yum! I am taking a traditional pumpkin cheesecake recipe and making it healthy. My graham cracker crust is 25% reduced fat and the filling consists of a mix of light and fat free cream cheeses, canned pumpkin, pie spices, jello sugar-free cheesecake mix and light whipped cream.

The mashed potatoes and stuffing will be my "bad" traditional foods. Hubby has to have his potatoes and I like stuffing. :) I plan to use day-old french wheat bread in the stuffing though, so it will be a little healthier.

Portions will be small (except the turkey, which is great for a week of clean eating!) so I'm not tempted to overeat during the holiday weekend. I will also be sure to get my workouts in and head to the gym Thursday morning, if not just hit the treadmill at home.

Rested & Recharged

Last week was crazy. In addition to my two-class school load, Mom came into town on Thursday for a two-day visit. I haven't seen her since July and we have a really good relationship. Because of her short visit, I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. So this meant I skipped a few workouts. I think it turned out in my favor, actually. I feel really rested and recharged for this week. After spending the past 4 1/2 hours on business and work (checking emails and writing articles), I'm ready to get up and outta the house and head to the gym! With Thanksgiving looming only 4 days away, I'm hoping to still get all my weight workouts in this week despite the holiday temptations to eat and stay home with hubby. So I have to start strong beginning today and carry it through to week's end.

Later this week I'll be posting my Thanksgiving menu for two. It will be a healthier version of some classics but some unhealthy staples will be there too. My plan on controlling it is to only cook small quantities of food so I'm not stuck with leftover pie and mashed potatoes for five days, tempting me! I'll share my food choices and tips with you guys later in the week. For now, it's off to the gym for quads and abs. I might even head outside for a leaf-raking "cardio" session later today!

Wednesday's Training: Cardio; Chest/Tris/Abs

Workout #1: Cardio on Treadmill - I did my 2-4-6-8 cardio routine for 3 rounds and followed that with incline walking at 4.0mph, 5.0% incline for 10 minutes. Pretty good workout!

Workout #2: Chest/Triceps/Abs - Had a good upper body workout, although I was a little tired (need to look into some supplements for energy!). Abs killed me. I followed this with 10 minutes of deep, thorough stretching for my hips and hamstrings.

1. Incline DB Bench Press 30sx15; 40sx12; 45sx10; 50sx10
2. Hammer Chest Press 25sx10; 25sx8,2; 25sx9; 25sx10
3. Flat DB Fly 20sx12, 20sx10, 20sx10
4. Lying Triceps Overhead Xtnsn w/ EZ Bar 30x12, 40x9, 40x8
5. Rope Press Down 20x12, 20x12, 20x12

1. Hanging Leg Raise (Straight ss Bent) x10,5; x10,5; x10,5; x10,5
2. BOSU Crunch x15, x15, x15, x20
Total workout=1 hour

Workout: Long, Lean Legs!

I went in early to day for a BodyAge assessment, so I hit legs afterward (around 10:30am). Lifting early has never been a favorite activity of mine, but this was a great workout!

Quads & Abs
Length: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Warmup: 5 minutes upright bike
Hammer Hack Squat (Narrow Stance): 25'sx20; 25'sx15; 45'sx15; 45'sx15; 55'sx12
Smith Wide Stance Squat: 25'sx15; 45'sx15; 45'sx12; 50'sx10
Leg Extensions (2 regular, 2 in): 50x15; 60x15; 70x12; 80x10; Right only:30x6, 30x10
Hip Abduction: 80x18; 100x15; 120x15
Reverse Incline Crunch*: x12; x11; x10
Stability Ball Crunch: x15,5; x15,10; x15,15; x20

*Did sets of abs between sets of Leg Extension and Hip Abduction.

Another Week (and two classes) Down!

This past week was crazy! I am taking 4 college classes condensed into 8-week semesters. While I'm only taking 2 classes per semester, two semesters overlapped for a 3-week period. Last week was the culmination of the first two classes, so I was super-swamped studying for finals, writing papers and doing regular assignments in my other two classes, plus helping Dave with his calc class. I spent no less than 5 hours M-F on homework, then 8 hours EACH Saturday and Sunday! I finished around 5pm yesterday with 3 pending assignments not completed, but I was spent and needed a break!

Maybe surprising to some, I didn't miss a workout last week! :) No matter how busy I am, I do my best to make it to the gym. I need the stress relief, the endorphins, and of course I don't want to fall back on my training. At this point in my fitness career, my training level is advanced to the point where it takes a drastic, consistent and all-out effort for me to make even small changes. Just maintaining my normal routine will not help me with any new gains, so I'm making a concerted effort to fully utilize the next 5-6 months before I start dieting again.

Here's the training round-up for last week:
Mon-Cardio;Quads
Tue-Cardio;Hams, Calves
Wed-Cardio;Chest,Tris,Abs
Thu-Routine practice
Fri-Back,Bis,Calves
Sat-Power,Shoulders

So let's hope I can easily get the schoolwork and the workouts in this week, since my workload has been reduced by half!

Been Slacking on the Posting!

Hey there everyone, sorry for the negligence on not keeping my fitness super-blog up-to-the-minute, ha ha! Here's a quick recap of everything:

New training split is going really well, but I'm staying way to busy juggling 4 college classes (plus a 5th class - calculus - that I spend about 10 hours a week tutoring my hubby in!), and then my writing assignments.

I am excited about my goals and the new training regime that will get me there. This may not seem like a big deal, but it IS for me! For the past few years of writing up my training plans, I seemed to settle into a little comfort zone that I didn't want to get out of. Now I have the perspective of my new coach to kick me out of that zone, and I'm paying him, so I can't complain! (just kidding!) It's doing a great job of keeping me motivated. So much so, that about 3 different people at the gym asked me if I'm training for a show soon! "No, I'm just always a beast in the gym!" is what I should've said.

Anyway, today I did my fitness routine practice (an off day from lifting). Felt really great with all the therapy I'm getting on my traps, hamstring and hip. Range of motion is getting back to normal and therefore my technique is much better, since it's not relative to my injuries and compensations.

Promise to post tomorrow!

Thursday's Training: Routine Practice; Back/Biceps/Calves

Workout #1
I didn't make it in to the gymnastics center last week, so I was ready to go this week despite my cold. I took it easy but did manage to re-choreograph the middle part of my routine! All I did was a 10-minute general warm-up w/ stretching, then 30 minutes of strength move segments and choreography.


Workout #2
Today's workout was back, biceps and calves. I couldn't hit it as hard as I wanted to because of the darn head cold I'm getting over, but it was still a pretty good workout. I did lower the number of sets and the intensity was about 95%.

Wide Lat Pulldown 70x25, 90x12, 100x12, 110x10, 120x8
Hammer Iso Underhand Row 25'sx12, 45'sx12, 55'sx10
Flex Seated Row 20'sx12, 25'sx12, 30'sx10
Straight Arm Pulldown 60x15, 65x12, 65x10
Alternating DB Curl 20'sx12ea, 22.5'sx10ea, 25'sx8ea
Incline Double DB Curl 15'sx10, 15'sx10
Donkey Calf Raise 120x18, 180x12, 220x12
Seated Calf Raise 45x20, 72.5x15, 55x12

Total time=1 hour
Back=14 sets
Biceps=5 sets
Calves=6 sets

Sunday, Monday, Tuesday: Training Update

Been slacking on my logging! I'm halfway through my first training week on the new split. I have a minor head cold but, yes, I'm still training. Dumb? A little. But it won't stop me from working out. :)

Sunday: Quads, Abs
Warm-up: 5 minutes Arc Trainer
Narrow Hack Squat 25'sx25; 45'sx12; 70'sx12; 70'sx12
Wide Stance Smith Squat 45'sx12; 45'sx12; 45'sx12
Leg Extensions (every other set, toes turned in or out) 60x13-Right20x6; 60x12; 75x10; 90x12
Hip Abduction 90x15; 90x15; 90x15
Hanging Leg Raises (Straight, Bent) 8,7; 8,7; 8,7
BOSU Crunches 12; 12; 12

Time=1 hour

Monday: Hamstrings, Calves
Wide Stance SLDL's 65x15; 95x15; 115x10; 135x11
Lying Leg Curl 40x12; 40x12; 50x8,2; 50x8,2
Seated Leg Curl 30x15; 40x15; 50x15
Hip Adduction 70x20; 70x18; 80x18
Standing Calf Raise 45x13; 60x10; BWx20
Seated Hammer Calf Raise 10'sx15; 20'sx15; 25'sx12

Time=55 minutes

Tuesday: Cardio; Chest, Triceps, Abs
Morning: 25 minutes incline walking on treadmill

*Felt sick today (head cold), so didn't take it to full intensity/failure
Hammer Chest Press 25'sx12; 35'sx12; 45'sx7,1; 45'sx6,2
Incline DB Bench Press 40'sx10; 40'sx8; 45'sx8, 35'sx9
Free Motion Fly 15x15; 20x12; 25x10
Reverse Grip Triceps Press Down 50x12; 60x10; 60x8
Lying Tri Extension 30x10; 30x10; 30x9
Hanging Leg Raises (Straight, Bent) 8,7; 8,5; 8,5
Reverse Crunch x7
Stability Ball Crunch 15,5; 12,8

Time=50 minutes

Friday's Training: First Day, New Split

I’m on a new 7-day split which I just started today. I chose Back and Bis to start since I’d trained them the furthest out this week and they were well-rested.

Wide Lat Pulldown 40×15-55×15; 85×12; 85×12; 100×8; 90×10
Underhand Iso Lateral Hammer Rows 35’sx12; 45’sx12; 45’sx10; 45’sx12
1-Arm DB Row (R,L) 35×15ea; 45×12ea; 45×12ea
Lat Pulldown Crunches (weight in kg) 50×12; 60×5-50×5; 50×8
Alternating DB Curl 25×8ea; 20×8ea; 20×10ea; 20×6,1,1ea
Incline Double DB Curl (#5, ~60 degree angle) 15’sx9; 15’sx7,3; 15’sx9

Total time=55 minutes
Rest B/W sets=90 seconds
Back=15 sets
Biceps=7 sets

Thursday's Training: Shoulders & Calves

Grow moo-moos, grow! I have reinstated calf training in one final attempt to add some size... ANY SIZE... on to them!

Seated DB Shoulder Press 25'sx15; 35'sx10; 40'sx8; 30'sx8,2
Kettlebell Double Standing Press 26'sx10; 26'sx8(push on last rep); 26'sx8(push on last 2 reps)
DB Scaption 15'sx12; 15'sx10,2; 12.5'sx10,2; 12.5'sx8,2
Free Motion Shoulder Press 45x12; 45x8; 25x15

Donkey Calf Raise 100x20; 180x13; 220x12; 280x12
Seated Hammer Calf Raise 30x12; 50x12

Rest b/w sets: 90 seconds
Shoulders=14 sets
Calves=6 sets