My 1st online journal

[Claudette]

Okay, so I've been a member here for sometime now and have never had the guts to start a journal, until now. I started Atkins earlier this summer and lost 7 pounds immediately but have been at a standstill since I started lifting weights again. Right now I am at 127.5 and my goal is to be at 120. My problem has always been the nutrition part. I've been weight training for as long as I can remember but have never been overly strict with my diet, although I've always remained conscious of not overeating carbs.

A little history: I've been plagued with IT-band tendonitis and Patellular tendonitis for the past two years, so I have not been able to run or ride a bike. I hate cardio but have been making myself do the elliptical. Anyway, on leg days, I am unable to do leg presses b/c my knees constantly pop (my left knee pops when I bend it, and my right knee pops when I straighten it). I don't have med insurance, so don't ask about what the docs say. Anyway, I can do squats and everything else, although I am pretty frugal with the weight I do on squats.

My roommate measured me on 7/11 and here were my stats then. I'm going to be remeasured next Sunday, and I'll have her measure my bis and thighs:

Bust: 34
Waist: 28 1/4
Hips (she measured the fattest part, which was down where the thighs were--think that's where she was supposed to measure): 39 1/4. I'm HUGE here

My legs are the easiest to get in shape, as I competeted in roller skating when I was young, and have been active my whole life.

Overall, since starting Atkins, my clothes fit a lot looser, but I want to lose that last 7.5 pounds. I have a picture posted in the FYI members pics forum and that was taken 2 years ago when I was 16% bf and about 120. That is my goal for now, since competing is out of the question this late in the summer.

Anyway, here's what I hope to get out of this journal: NUTRITIONAL HELP!!! I've been reading Jodi's journal and it is an awesome help, although I can't afford all those supplements right now. I will not post my current diet b/c I think I have given enough info for everyone to help me with a sample diet.

My leg workout for today went something like this:

Squats: 45x15; 50x 15; 55x15 (I usually do smith squats but today did BB squats, so I kept it easy on the weight, just in case)
Rvs lunges: 10x15; 10x15 (stationary); 10x15
Step ups: 0x20(single--20 on left leg and then 20 on rt); 5x20 (althernated); 0x20 (alternated)
Plie Squats: 25x15; 25x15; 25x15 (toes up on about 10 of each ex)
Lying leg curl: 55x15; 50;15; 55x15; 40x15 (I'll explain this later)
Leg ext: 75x10; 67.5x12; 60x15; 45x12 (single)
Adductor machine: 75x15; 80x12; 80x15
Star jumpers: 2 sets of 10 (no energy!)

I try and go light on my leg curls b/c my feet pronate, which means that I walk on the outside of my feet. Anyway, this has negatively affected my leg curls, as my toes point outward when I do leg curls (lying or sitting). So I try to do light weight and focus on my feet positioning to avoid an imbalance in my hams.

I didn't rest that much in b/w sets today, so I got a good cardio workout. I know the weights seem a little erratic, but I started doing drop sets, but sometimes the weight was too low to begin with so I didn't drop as much as I could have. This is the last week of drop sets anyway.

Thanks for reading my little novel. Feedback is greatly appreciated.
Oh, my current w/o schedule is M, W, F, Sa, Su. I'll do Back and Tris on Friday, along with Abs. I am planning on doing cardio tomorow morning and using my roommates many pilates tapes to switch things up.

If anyone is wondering, I didn't do Abductors b/c of my tendonitis--it tightens up my IT-band and it's a pain in the A$$ to loosen.

-Tracie

 

[Jodi]

Hey Tracie .............Claudette

Couple things:

1. How old are you?
2. PLEASE post your current diet in a meal by meal format including quantities and totals(I don't care what it looks like, I mainly want it to see your habits)
3. Do you not want to eat carbs?
4. If so why?
5. How many days a week do you lift? Cardio? other?
6. How tall are you?

 

[Jenny]

Welcome to the journals Claudette! Good to see you in here!

 

[Claudette]

Hey guys! Thanks for reading my novel

Jodi, I'm 5'4" and I'm 23 years old. I have been on no carbs all summer (Atkins), so if I were to stick to no carbs, it would not be a problem to me. I'd prefer to stay on it, only because I've spent so much damn money on food up to this point, and I work in a restaurant, and it helps with my willpower. Also, if it helps me to lose these last 7 pounds, then I'm definitely all for it.

Sample plan:
3 egg whits, 1 whole egg
1 atkins pancake with 1 tbsp pb i3 carbs and 21 pro in bake mix and 2 for the nat pb); with atkins syrup (no carbs)

snack:
1 atkins bar: 8 fat, 2 carbs (after fiber); 21 pro

lunch:
grilled chix salad (no carrots) with O&V (don't know carb count); oh, it usually has 2-3 ounces of feta b/c atkins allows cheese!

snack:
atkins shake (ran out of the shakes so I don't have the count on these)

dinner:
8 oz broiled salmon with steamed broc
or
broiled chix breast; 1tsp mustard; steamed broc.

If I don't have the brocoli, and ddin't have a salad earlier in the day, this is the time for my salad.

After workouts:
30g protein shake with 1tbsp pb (if I don't have pb for breakfast)--although I've been slacking with this part (I love PB!!)

Sometimes I'll have a burger without the bun and some veggies.

My weaknesses are definitely pb and cheese. I can't have a turkey burger w/o cheese. I wait tables, and my options at work are ususally a chix sand w/o bread, salmon (I have to pay for that myself, the chix and the burgers are free), nasty sole (It's nasty b/c my rest. flours it and it tastes better w the flour, but I have to get it w/o, of course.

Some mornings I'll have 3 wholes eggs, cooked over medium, because of Atkins, but I'm thinking of switching to all hard-boiled eggs in the morning.

I used to have oatmeal with water every morning, which is something I think i miss. That, coupled with hb eggs should keep me full.

My pantry is full of tuna, canned salmon and canned chix, but I have yet to open them, for some reason.

My workouts are usually consistant, with my training splits changing every week. I do what I'm in the mood to do.

This past week it looked something like this:
Su: Delts and abs and cardio
M: Chest and Bis and not much cardio (after w/o, of course)
W: Legs
Th: I'm about to go to the gym to do cardio--I usually don't w/o on Thurs)
F: I'll do Back and Tris
Sa: I might do cardio on the elliptical or go swimming.
Su: Start all over again.

My w/o schedule is tentative b/c of my work schedule. Up until yesterday, I was working 2 jobs, now only 1 so I have more time.

Does that answer all your questions??

Man, these journals are a lot of work, aren't they!

 

[ZECH]

Tracie, don't worry about the scales! Throw them out! You may actually gain WEIGHT but loose fat!! Go by the look in the mirror!! Good luck!

 

[Jodi]

Well, I'll help you with your diet if you want, but I won't help you stay on an Atkins diet.

 

[Claudette]

Thanks guys. I never weighed myself before I got on Atkins, but I can stop, I promise.

Jodi, I don't have to stay on Atkins. I'm actually getting tired of it. I don't like consuming so much fat. I'll do what you say, sinsay

I just got back from the gym. I love not having to work during the day. Although I do start bartending school next week so my days will once again be full. Needless to say, I'm taking advantage of this brief time I have off.

I just did cardio and a crapload of abs today. Since I did legs yesterday, I wasn't able to do too much, though.

Elliptical: 25 min at HIIT.
Rowing machine: 10 minutes: my knees started hurting me and my forearms were too tired so I stopped at 10. I was low on energy so all I did was level 4.

Abs:
Swiss ball: knee bends (where your hands are on the floor and your feet on the ball and you bring your knees to your chest): 3x20
Swiss ball oblique crunches (feet up against the wall--this was hard!) 2x20 (each side)
swiss ball side to side oblique stabilizer: 3x20
Swiss ball crunches: 2x20
Incline bench sit ups (do this because of the navy): 10lbsx20; 5lbsx20

that's all she wrote.

Diet so far:
1 atkins bar b/f workout. I was too hungry. I know I should have done it on an empty stomach, but my hunger pangs were 2 seconds apart so I had to have one.

After workout, 24g protein plus 2 scoops of pb--I'm on my way out the door again and I have no time for another meal until 3 when I go to work.

That brings my totals thus far to:
pro: 53
carbs: 6
fat: 32

I'll have a few hb eggwhites before i leave to bring up my carb count. Isn't it 1g of pro for every pound of body weight?

Oh yeah, one more thing. I was looking in the mirror today at the gym and my abs aren't looking too bad, but I have those darn stubborn love-handles and I NEED TO GET RID OF THEM!


Any suggestions???

 

[ZECH]

Do you have any current pics Tracie?

 

[bludevil]

Originally posted by Jodi
Well, I'll help you with your diet if you want, but I won't help you stay on an Atkins diet.

What do you have against the Atkins diet. It's been proven effective and healthy.

 

[Claudette]

No new pics yet. I have some from about a year ago, if those will do. I don't have a digital camera so it will take me awhile to get some pics b/c I'll have to get them developed.

bludevil, you're going to have to ask Jodi about that one. I was only 15 lbs overweight (for me, anyway...I was definitely not obese), and all I could lose was 7.5 pounds. Anyway, like I said, Jodi will have to answer that question for ya

 

[Jodi]

Originally posted by bludevil
What do you have against the Atkins diet. It's been proven effective and healthy.

Its fine for your average person, non-athletic, wants to drop weight and doesn't care if its fat or muscle.(although I still wouldn't do it).

We as athletes, be it BB or runner etc, require clean healthy carbs in our systems. Something in which a typical Atkins diet doesn't have until the end. We need glycogen for our muscles for energy and for our workouts.

 

[Claudette]

I managed to eat some more food today

afternoon snack: 1 egg white; 1/4 cup almonds (throughout the afternoon). that was one serving on the bag. 1carb and 8 protein (i think).
meal 2:
broiled chicken breast (I think it was 4 oz) with swiss cheese and 2 sundried tomatoes and 1 tsp dijon mustard.
romaine salad (about 1.5 cups) with oil and vinegar and 2 oz of feta cheese, although I didn't finish the salad.

meal 3:
8oz blackened salmon.
-this was really a snack or something b/c I was craving salmon and something tasty. I got it after I got off of work and it was yummy!

that's all for me for tonight. I just got done working and it might as well have been a friday or saturday night, it was so busy. I am TIRED!!

 

[Jodi]

I would like to see you start adding carbs back into your diet, but slowly.

Take away some of the fat (from cheese especially) and start with 1/2 C. Oats in the morning. Try this for a few days and then again cut back the fat and add in an apple or whatever slow burning carb you want.

We need to let your body adjust and get use to carbs again so you don't gain too much weight. You will initially put on a few pounds due to water but it will shed once we get your diet in order.

 

[ZECH]

Originally posted by Claudette
No new pics yet. I have some from about a year ago, if those will do. I don't have a digital camera so it will take me awhile to get some pics b/c I'll have to get them developed.

Just wondered............I have only seen the one pic of you! Would like to see them!

 

[bludevil]

Originally posted by Jodi
Its fine for your average person, non-athletic, wants to drop weight and doesn't care if its fat or muscle.(although I still wouldn't do it).

We as athletes, be it BB or runner etc, require clean healthy carbs in our systems. Something in which a typical Atkins diet doesn't have until the end. We need glycogen for our muscles for energy and for our workouts.

So are you against CKD diets also. Their mostly 5 days without carbs and 2 on. Would that suffice or do you believe bb'ers need carbs everyday. Not trying to argue or anything, just learn.

 

[Jodi]

CKD is fine if they are done properly. That's the problem I notice with alot of people though. Poorly planned.

 

[Claudette]

Okay, so I woke up yesterday feeling fine, but after being awake for an hour, I noticed my throat beginning to hurt, and then came the cough

Needless to say, I didn't workout yesterday, and have yet to do so today. I might take it off. I really shouldn't b/c I was supposed to do Back and Tris yesterday and that would have finised up all my muscle groups for the week, but what can you do when you're sick? I'm whining now, I know, but I hate being sick, especially on the weekend!

Anyway, my diet so far today looks like this:

17.5g pro; 1.5c; 1.5f
1hb eggwhite
1/3 cup oats: 5pro; 27c (before fiber); 3 fat. This might not be correct b/c the serving size for the oats was 1/2 cup but i was so full after the protein that 1/3 was all I could eat. The same goes for the egg. How can everyone eat 6 eggs and their protein? That amazes me!

Okay, I'm going to go back to bed now. I've taken my zicam and my vitamins. Hopefully when I wake up I'll feel better and I'll be able to hit the gym. Wish me luck!