Feather weight-lifters!
 

Ha Feathers,

I know a few of you are good with weightlifting and I am gonna start with it as of today. I think a lot of feathers are scared to lift because it just seems like something women/small women don't do. Atleast, that's what it feels like for me.

I am super 'weak' due to having had health issues when I was 16 and never exercising since. I picked up exercise last summer and am getting in better shape, but my body needs some muscle. I notice with running and with core exercises how weak I still am.

I've read a lot of stuff so far, and I feel like I should perfectly understand WHICH muscles I am stimulating and why before I pick up a dumbbell. I am reading the "Dumbbell training for strength and fitness" from matt brzycki. I like how he explains everything. I don't wanna lift in the gym and we have dumbbell equipment at home, so it's perfect for me.

Few things I am wondering about is:
- Can you see results while you are eating at a calorie deficit?
- How long did it take for you to see results?
- How much did you lift in the beginning and how much did you progress?
- Brzycki says you should lift at a weight where you only barely can reach the end of each rep. Did you do this?
- Any other tips you have for a beginner?

Hope we can chat away about lifting here! Would love to hear how you girls are doing and obviously I want to report back with a report on my amazing new found abilities in a few days :P

Philana, glad to see you're looking into lifting :)

When you're eating at a deficit, the lifting will help you maintain the muscle you already have. You'll lose the fat like you want to while keeping the muscle.

I started lifting before I started eating healthier, and even though I was obese I did see results fairly quickly. I remember my clothes fitting differently and having to go down a size. When I started eating better and lifting heavier I saw even better results. Now I'm trying to eat at a surplus while weight training. I've pretty much just maintained my weight (not quite officially, haven't officially weighed yet but I have peeked during the day) but I have lost a half inch off my hips and waist and a full inch off my underbust. My stomach is getting flatter when previously NOTHING was working.

I started out really small in the beginning, just 5lb hand weights and lifting about 30lbs with the dumbbells. I slowly got that up to 10lb hand weights and 40lbs with the dumbbells. In the fall I got serious and I've slowly been increasing the weight I lift each week. Right now I can lift 20lb hand weights (and I probably need to go higher) and the amount with the dumbbells varies with the exercise. Deadlifting I can get to 100lbs (and I'm so psyched I'm so close to deadlifting my own bodyweight!). I can squat 85lbs and lift 70lbs. I'll see if I'm stronger this week.

You should lift where you can barely finish the set. If you can finish it easily then it is too light for you!

Just don't be afraid and/or second guess yourself :) If something feels too easy, challenge yourself and go higher!

Getting stronger feels amazing. I'm tiny so I blow people away with how much I can lift and even do outside of the gym. Even yesterday I was able to adjust one of the seats on the spin bikes at the gym. One of the men had rode the bike and tightened the handle a lot, the other women couldn't adjust it, they asked me and I turned it effortlessly! They were totally shocked!

Lifting made a huge difference inch wise for me as well.
Now that I'm down to such a small amount left to lose I'm really focusing on strength gains. If I don't have something to work towards I can lose momentum.

I am whit you , I am going to star WL as today too. So good luck to you too.

I need to start lifting too, I don't think it's my weight I mind so much as my flab factor and knowing I will just dangle helplessly if a pullup bar is placed in front of me.

How do you get over the embarrassment factor? I don't have a gym membership and the other day I almost died doing 3 pushups.

sontaikle: thank you so much for your advice and inspiration. You are so awesome! Hope to be like you someday with the weights :D

You managed to do 3? You are my hero! LOL. I can't even do one. But seriously, my few attempts at weights were at the gym and though my gym-instructor was supportive, after all my warnings that I am very weak he said he'd put on a low weight and then what he did, I could not do so he had to go lower still. So yeh, I feel like a real idiot.

I did my first routine today and I have decided to just go with it the same way I approached running. One tiny step at a time. The first time running I couldnt even get to the end of my street. Now I run 10k. So yeh, some parts of the routine (like wallsit and lunges and crunches) I just did without the dumbbells because I just couldnt do it with. But I figure if I just stick with it eventually I can use weights!

It just sucks that my body is so weak. I was very ill when I was 16 and haven't done any sports ever because of it. Up until I started running I couldn't even comfortably stand for an hour or longer. Now I am feeling stronger because of the cardio, and I just can't even imagine what strength training will change in my body!

So yay. I will just stay positive! LOL.

Philana - yay, congrats on getting started on weight lifting!! I really enjoy it, I started about 6 weeks ago. I'm doing New Rules of Lifting for Women and enjoying it. I haven't lost any weight but I'm down an inch around my waist and hips. I also feel like I look a little better.

I still feel a little embarrassed going into the weight room so I try and go when it's not busy. I don't know whether the guys are laughing at me or not, but I try not to worry about it.

I haven't been doing it very long but hand weights I started with 8lbs and I'm up to 12lbs. For lunges and squats I started with just bodyweight and I'm slowly moving up. I have had several knee injuries and I broke my foot over the break so my balance isn't good so I'm just trying to regain strength.

OMG I AM HUNGRY!
I ate plenty already but I am sooo hungry. This is crazy. I should have planned the eating around my workout a bit better. Don't have any protein-boosts around the house right now. I am gonna just die. LOL.

This is the weirdest thing ever. I've had plenty of days with 1000 calorie burns this week and not be this hungry. Help?

Heck yeah! As mentioned above, resistance training is one of the only tools in our toolbox that helps with muscle preservation while dieting. A lot of people wind up reaching their "goal weigh" dissatisfied with the reflection staring back at them in the mirror, and one of the primary reasons this tends to happen is focusing on weight over body composition.

As a novice to resistance training, you're very lucky. Lucky because you'll be able to experience the fastest rate of progress. One way of thinking about it is - the less adapted your body is to resistance training, the higher the rate of progress will be.

I train people for a living and without fail, all of my clients realize "strength gains" within the first two weeks. I put strength in quotations because the actual gain in strength is triggered from a lot of variables... improved coordination of exercises, improved nervous system output which essentially triggers muscle contraction, etc.

In terms of visible improvements, it really depends. People carrying less fat tend to see the results faster, which makes sense given the fact that subcutaneous fat resides below the skin and on top of the muscles. So the more of it you have, the less you're going to notice changes in muscle volume.

My relatively thin clients will often see results in the first month. Just keep in mind that muscle growth happens much slower than fat loss. Given the fact that you're eating a calorie deficit, that merely compounds this fact.

Just my two cents here, but I would err on the side of overly conservative. How much you're lifting in the beginning isn't anywhere near as important as how you're lifting. Quality vs. quantity.

Many of the exercises will be new to you, so using solely your body weight or very light loads that allow for 15-20 reps is important. Movement quality is like the foundation of a house. If you go throwing lots of weight at a foundation that lacks movement quality... it'll eventually crumble.

Learn the movements. And when you're 100% comfortable with them, start increasing the load by small increments (5-10 lbs) until you find weights that keep you in the rep range you're shooting for.

Most people's goals will put them in the 5-12 rep range, but in all honesty, it depends.

Working hard is definitely important. But I wouldn't make that recommendation to a beginner ever for a variety of reasons - some of which I mentioned above.

Let's put it this way...

In the research we'll see where people who have been sedentary for a long time actually gain muscle in their legs in response to a structured walking program. Most wouldn't think of walking as an exercise that elicits muscle growth. But the point is, novel stresses can do all sorts of neat things.

So again, be conservative and worry more about form than you do about load in the beginning. When the time is right, maybe a month or so down the road, you can emphasize the loads you're using. And don't get me wrong, load will eventually be very important... arguably the most important variable.

Read what I said in my above post about quality before quantity. What I'm referring to there is form. You need to have a very solid base of movement quality (form) before you go throwing progressively heavier loads around.

Weights on top of poor movement quality only stand to magnify the poorness.

Exercise form is, in a way, like any other habit. If you learn the habit incorrectly in the beginning, it's going to be very hard to correct down the road. This has to do with something referred to as motor pattern learning. Essentially your brain "molds" itself in ways that are specific to what you're doing. And once it's "molded," it becomes very hard to change.

Which is why it's so important to get form right from the outset. Thus, be conservative with your loads in the beginning.

I find a lot of people are way too overzealous and think I need to "kill my muscles" with loads that are far more than they're either ready for or far more than they need and they wind up overtrained, injured, etc.

What's funny, if you came into my gym and witnessed me training one of my clients who has been working with me for a while, you'd think, "Wow, she's lifting a lot of weight."

But those weights have been built on top of a lot of movement quality work.

Make sense?

It's certainly challenging. The good news is once you have those movement patterns grooved, things will be a lot easier.

I'll also add that on other forums it's common to have people post links of their exercise form. They'll actually film themselves, upload the video to youtube or something, and then post it on the forum for critique. It actually works out pretty well.

That said, I know some people hate the thought of putting themselves out there like that. I always offer that you can upload the video to youtube and set it to unlisted or private so that only people with the link can see it. Heck, I'd be open to critiquing it if you weren't comfortable posting it on the forum... just private message it to me or whatever.

Maybe posting exercise form check vids is commonplace around here too... I don't know. I'm brand new here.

Just a thought.

Few things I am wondering about is:
- Can you see results while you are eating at a calorie deficit?
For sure. As you cut the fat you'll actually see MORE results. I gained a lot of muscle over the winter eating at a surplus and lifting heavy. My weight didn't really change but I know I was eating beyond my BMR a lot of days. Now that I'm eating in deficit I'm seeing a lot more definition forming.
- How long did it take for you to see results?
Be patient. I've been at it, this time, since last June? I can't remember... it's been a while. I didn't notice anything but soreness for several months and then suddenly I realized parts of my body were hard, that had been squishy before! Now I can see definition in my arms, legs, and abs. It becomes more obvious every day it seems, now!
- How much did you lift in the beginning and how much did you progress? I was lifting prior to June but very light weights. I took weight training classes in High School and College so I have a pretty good idea of what I'm doing. I lift pretty heavy now. It's been a progression. Upping my weights a little each month. I definitely agree that you should have a trainer show you proper form or post on some of the bodybuilding forums to get advice. It could mean the difference between good results and major injury.
- Brzycki says you should lift at a weight where you only barely can reach the end of each rep. Did you do this? I max out my weights about once a month. During a regular workout I lift what I can do 3 sets of 8 with before reaching fatigue. When I max out I keep increasing until I reach failure. I wouldn't recommend doing this too often, you definitely feel it the next day!
- Any other tips you have for a beginner? Don't be afraid to try new things! Spend some time watching videos of people lifting with correct form. Also, free weights are soooo much better than the machines. Lifting a barbell above your head activates all your stabilizing muscles. Doing the shoulder press machine only works your shoulders. There is no comparison! Edit* BREATHE! Maybe this is just me. But a couple months ago one of the big muscle bound guys walked up to me and said "you're doing such a great job but you're holding your breath!!! Breathe!, Make some noise!!!" Weight lifting isn't always pretty, but holding back will only make it harder on you. I have to remind myself to breathe with each rep. It does make a gigantic difference in the amount I'm able to lift!

You'll love it! :)

God.

I've been postponing starting weight for months.

And now even this thread is haunting me! ;)

I really gotta start this up... with bodyweight stuff first, I'm sooo weak, it's shameful.

When I started strength training, I was also very weak (I didn't exercise until age 28, haha). Pushups from my knees were hard. Now I'm strong as crap. I can bang out a bunch of clapping pushups, and a chinup, and other awesome things. :D It takes time, but it will happen.

Yes, though I see the best results when I am eating at a small deficit or eating at maintenance.
I started getting stronger / lifting more right away. In terms of seeing it physically on your body, I'll just say, give it time. Don't give up. If you don't see results right away, you will after a while. I was sometimes disappointed with the speed of results, but now, ~21 months later (and about 12 months after I started lifting heavier / training harder), the difference is huge. And looking back, the time flew by. :)
For the first 6 months or so, I did the machines at the gym and did videos at home, of the low-weight-high-rep variety. I saw some progress, but I wasn't entirely happy, and I certainly couldn't do pushups or anything like that. The next 3 months, I started to do more free weight work & body weight work. Then for the last year I've been doing heavy lifting with free weights & body weight stuff too, with more focus & structure. My progress has exploded! And it's so fun now. I LOVE my lifting days. (Honestly, it wasn't much fun for me in the beginning. Stick it out. You may find you start to enjoy it more.)
I assume this means you can barely reach the last rep of each set? Yes, I generally did this (even when it meant 24 reps with a 5-pound dumbbell).
1) Do whatever you feel comfortable with. Yes, you'll get better results with free weights & going as heavy as you can. But I started out with machines and light weights, and it was helpful for me as a beginner, and it got me comfortable with strength training. When I started heavying up a year ago, I worked out at home for months. Now that I want to lift at the gym, so I have access to barbells and heavier dumbbells than I have at home, I'm comfortable doing so.
2) Stick with it, and try to see the long game in terms of body changes. Shifting my focus from "I want my body to look perfect right now" to "I want to get stronger / do a chinup / deadlift my bodyweight / etc" has been helpful for me; when I have a bad body image day, I just say, well, my body does awesome stuff, so, who cares... :p

PS GO YOU!!! :D

For those of you lamenting that you're weak, don't fret! It takes work to get up to lifting heavy but we all had to start somewhere. I remember struggling to lift 5lb weights and not even being able to do a pushup.

Just like when I began running I would struggle to run 100ft, let alone the 4 or 5 miles I can do without breaking a sweat now.

We all started somewhere. I know how scary it is to try something new and uncomfortable, but it's TOTALLY worth it. I'm sore from my weight training last night but IT FEELS AWESOME ;)

Me too. (I still haven't done anything yet!)

The stupidest part is that if I recompose my body at my current weight, I think I could be VERY HAPPY with my looks and not feel like I have to lose 5 lbs all the time.

Steve: Thank you for your great input and willingness to help. I try to work infront of a mirror and pay good attention to my form. The book I have has pretty detailed descriptions and a few pictures. When I am unsure I google the video's/pics. So far so good I think.

Turbo: Ah, come join me!!!! We can be strength-newbies together. Hahah. Now that you are so close to goal weight-wise you must have some shape-wise things you want to work on? ;)

ValRock: thank you! I've seen your pics and you look amazing. I agree with you on the free-weights. I want to really learn how to control my body and because I have weak joints I think it be best to make sure I get all the muscles involved, also the small/stabalizing ones as soon as possible. That's why I am doing dumbbells.

sumire: you are such an inspiration! I've read your reports on how much you are lifting before. I didn't know you staerted 'only' 2 years ago! And that you were 'weak' also. That gives great perspective. I've learned to not expect results in a day from my running. I never thought I'd run 10k. But now I can!

Krampus: Why don't you come join me and Turbo then? Hahah. We'll get all the feathers lifting some lbs!

---
In the back of my dumbbell book are a gazillion full body work-outs and I just picked one. I did this one yesterday, see below. I took it slow because I've quit on stuff before from pushing myself too hard in the beginning. The wallsit was REALLY an eyeopener. I thought that my legs had grown stronger from running but not so much I fear. I could only barely do 45seconds.

Because I worry I am developing shin splints I am taking a running break for a week and also decided to not do the standing calf raise. What do you guys think? Would it be good to do the calf raise to strengthen those muscles or should I first let them heal and then focus on strengthening them?

http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg855...png&res=medium

Thanks for all the enthousiastic replies. It is really helping me on trusting I can do this and sticking to it!

EXACTLY! I think I still want to loose a few pounds, but for most of it, I'm just really flabby LOL I could use some strenght training, definitely!

We have some stuff home (yoga mat, resistance cable, pull up bar (can't do one lol) but no dumbell.

I have a question though, so maybe all the awesome people who respond to the thread could help me!

My biggest fear is concerning being sore after muscles training. Right now I'm training for my first at the end of June, so I'm running 3 times a week. I'd like to pick up weight training but I just don't know when to do it. I'm scare to be sore if I do it the day before my running training and make me unable to run my kilometers. What would you suggest? What would be the best? Strenght training after my run? On my running days off?

I'm confuseeeeeeeeeeeeed! :dizzy:

Turbo: though I am no expert, from what I've read the soreness will go away faster if you stay moving. I noticed today that even though I am sore, the first minute or so of my cardio (elliptical/stationary bike) were tough but soon I felt like any other day.

I never have a problem running through soreness, either. Even when my legs are really sore, once I stretch and get moving, it's not a factor :).

Not a weight lifter, but I did join the gym 2 days ago!
I did some 20 min cardio, increased it to 23 min the next day. I know that I can do cardio for longer, but I did it just to get my blood pumping. I warmed up using the Jillian Michaels youtube video lol.
I just bought a yoga mat and boxing gloves. I will do yoga on Sundays and I want to try boxing on Wednesday. I am nervous because I see the fit men in the gym and I am insanely (serious) nervous around men. I'll prob be the least experienced one in the class. But we all have to start somewhere.
Don't want to do too much, so I think that my Sunday/Wedn plan is good for now.
When I am up for it, I want to do some strength training exercises at least 1 day a week. I am sore now though, so I will give myself a little break-I tend to overdo everything a bit to the point where I am overwhelmed so I want to do something moderate and build up.

shin splints: wait until they heal! i know it sucks, but those are actual tears where the muscle has pulled away from the bone. let them heal before you stress the muscle again.

after that, yes - you need to

a) develop strength in your lower legs, esp the calf, achilles tendon, and ankles.
b) check your shoes - if the inner edge is worn more than the outer, bin them and get a new pair.



100% what steve T said, with this to add:

it's easy to talk about "form" but it's difficult to figure it out.

here's the easy way: do NOT focus on "get the weight up". instead, focus on the movement you need to make.

f.ex, think of the bicep barbell curl. we've all seen those guys at the gym with the tractor rims on the ends of the barbells slinging and flinging the weight up and down and smirking at everybody. he doesn't realize he looks like an idiot as his upper body whips back and forth like a tent pole in a high wind even as he bruises up his thighs by dropping the weight down to slam on them.

instead, start with just the bar - use the mini bar (the 25lb-er) if you need to and if that's too much, dont' even use the olympic bars, just use the handle.

stand with your body straight - tummy firm, pelvis tucked slightly under, knees soft, feet shoulder width apart, shoulders open and back (not hunched up around your ears or curved forward).

keep your elbows and upper arms firm to your sides as you hold the bar lightly in front of you.

with your head in a neutral position (not pulled back or bent forward and NEVER EVER to one side or the other while your traps are under load!), think about bending your elbows.

that's it.

that's all you're doing - bending the elbows. if it helps, pretend i have bob ross's voice here. you're not lifting the bar, you're just bending the elbows and the bar is coming along for the ride.

at the top, give your biceps a squeeze for a count of three then, slowly, straighten your elbows again. don't straighten them all the way - locking joints is something we never do - just straighten them out until they're in the starting position.

it's like that for all exercises.

bench press = straighten your arms.

leg press - straighten your legs.

dead lift = stand up

and so on.


if you focus on "get the weight up", your body will automatically use every method at its disposal to achieve that goal - and that means cheating like the devil. if you focus on function, that's all that will happen.

haha funny, i was asking my friend for advice about lifting free weights because i've been reading on here about how much better they are than the machines and i have NO idea how to get started or what to do. He's pretty into fitness and stuff and when i asked him for advice about how to start he got SUPER excited and was like "oh man! i have so much stuff i can send you. or better yet, what's your friday schedule like" and i told him i was basically free. he goes "great! we'll meet friday around one and i have a 45 min routine i'll put you through. i know exactly what you want. im so excited for this!" So, wish me luck, i start today! If he wants to get me into shape for FREE, i'm all with it :carrot: (but i'm actually kind of scared because he is a super intense person and really into fitness. i can already see myself dying lol)

I sort of have a progress update here. I've been lifting more now (3x a week as opposed to one), doing less cardio and eating more for over a month. This is what I've noticed:

- BIG gains in strength. At the beginning I could lift a lot less than I do now
- Flatter tummy :carrot:
- Lost an inch off my hips, waist, bust and ribcage.
- Not so sure about my weight. My parents bought a new scale and threw out the old one so I can't compare, but the new one weighs me in at 116 point something. The one at the gym still weighs me in the same. So I have maintained my weight more or less while losing inches. Not really caring about the number, but I really wanted to make sure I wasn't losing!

I wouldn't mind getting back up to 120 if I look totally awesome ;)


veggieburger - that's awesome! Your friend sounds like a great guy! Good luck! Always nice to get trained for free! :D

I know that feeling when a friend wants to get into fitness. Whenever one of my friends talks about getting fit, I'm like "I'LL TRAIN YOU" because having a buddy is fun!

Played around with a resistance cable last night at a friend's house, GOSH I'm weak. Dangled pathetically on the pullup bar for a while. And my arms are sore. I end up at this friend's house several times a week normally.

I could do that a few times a week in addition to cardio and incorporating actual variety in weights, and that would be a start!

Despite losing the lottery the first (and probably only) time I ever played it I am on cloud nine right now :cloud9:

Today I got to the gym early as I always do on Saturdays so I can lift weights in peace. I loaded up the bar with 100lbs since I had deadlifted 100lbs last week. I figured I would try to do more reps since I could only do a few last week.

What the **** though, right? I decided to go for it and put 115lbs. Did I mention that today I weighed in at 115lbs on my new scale?

I looked at that bar and I said "holy crap, that thing weighs as much as me...can I do this?"

I DID IT!! I did three reps and did two more sets of three reps after that. It was HARD but I did it!!

So happy right now. :carrot: Although I am betting I will pay for this tomorrow, LOL.

Sontaikle: OMG that is so awesome. Hope you didn't pay too dearly? ;)

threenorns: thanks, I did give my legs a rest but did the calf raise today and it did not hurt. I don't have shin splints just yet but I was worried for a bit. After a week of running-break they seem back to normal.

--
Did my second WL day today, it went much much better than the first day already. Mostly because I was more sure about the way to do the form on most.

I have a few questions though! Haha.
1. How is it possible that I can do the lunges and deadlift with 10lbs easy but I cant do the wallsit (without any weight)? I mean, the weight then is my entire body so that is obviously a bit more, but I can't even do it for 20 seconds without my legs burning.
2. I have the most difficulty doing the "Bent over Raise" the way it is in my book. I can barely make it through 1 proper form rep. During the positive work I manage barely, holding it in mid air is ****, my negative work goes smoothly, I don't 'drop' the weight) I used only the heavy dumbell halter (abt 2lbs?) without any weights on it and it was already giving me trouble. See the form I used here:

http://www.muscleandperformancemag.c...ideAppeal3.jpg

There's also the 'external rotation' that I find very hard to do with just the halter.

http://www.musclechronicle.com/wp-co.../external1.jpg

Any tips are welcome, otherwise I'll just keep trying and trying and eventually I'll be able to do them for more reps and with actual weight on them I'm sure.

that "bent over raise" is actually a back flye.


here's a video showing how to do it: http://www.ehow.com/video_4953477_pi...cise-bent.html

the big thing is to NOT bend your elbows or flail the arm back and forth (which you already know).

these exercises work your delts and rotator cuff muscles. very common for these muscles to be critically weak in women - take it easy and give them time.

OK feathers, I've been reading stumptuous and lifting websites all morning. Tonight I'm hitting the YMCA gym with my neighbor and I will have access to free weights and dumbbells. I'm scared because I don't really know what I'm doing, but I have to start somewhere.

Report: That went well. I am sore and starving, ravenously hungry.

awesome! I was super hungry after my first lifting too, not so much the second time because I planned my meal better. My 3rd day is tomorrow, though I dread the watertight next day. lol

How bad was your waterweight gain? I'm the same as yesterday.

Only about 0.4lbs I think - but I was/am stuck while I should be dropping some more so I don't know if there's more waterweight hidden in there because of strength.

I encourage everyone I know who asks how I lost the weight and got into such great shape to give heavy lifting a try. So many women just focus on eating and cardio, which is great, but heavy lifting is what took my body to a whole other level. I still have people asking me if I'm losing weight all the time and I haven't lost since Dec. It's all losing fat/gaining muscle at this point. It didn't take me that long to see results. Before I got into heavy lifting, I did Insanity, so I was already doing a lot of push ups and really liked the way it made my arms and back look. Then I moved on to Chalean Extreme and noticed a difference within the first month. I was already at or very close to my goal weight then, so it was easy to see small changes. I'm doing The New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women now.

Hey ladies!! I took a week off because I've had final exams and I just didn't have enough time and somehow I lost 2lbs! I don't really know what that means.. congrats krampus and philana on starting weight lifting, I love it.

Lisa: Haha, I lose weigth when I don't exercise for a few days too it seems

Just did my 3rd time. I notice I just really have to force myself to go do it because it is so boring. How do you make it fun? I mean when I do cardio I have my music on and am kickin' it. With the strength you are kinda static in your movements, you don't get super sweaty and you have to really pay attention. It feels like a hassle. I will keep up, but it would be easier if I could somehow make it more fun!

I'm drinking a protein-shake right now. Because it is good they say. Any one with opinions on that?

I would think that you had water weight in your muscles from the training, I'm sure it wasn't muscle mass lost! If anything the water weight was just hiding two lbs of fat loss from a few weeks ago!

I do my strength training with music on as well, which helps, and between sets I generally stand around and think about what a badass I am, haha. :D Strength training did become more fun for me over time, as I started lifting more (and thus feeling more like a badass ;)). Focusing on how much I've improved also makes things fun for me.

This is the best ever. I would love to be as badass as you, you're one of my 3FC fitness idols!

Hahahaha, LOVE this!!!!!! From now on, I too, will think about what a badass I am between sets. :D:D:carrot::carrot::carrot: