Thanks all! It feels good to help to inspire other. I remember how seeing transformation in other women with similar body shapes/sizes to mine really rocketed me to a better head space. Its easier to visual yourself achieving some goals when you can see how dramatic a change is in store.
@grinchygirl I know just what you mean! It can seem overwhelming. Start with a friend or a trainer they can teach you so much. Correct body form breathing and all that. Some pretty cool stuff happens when you muscle train. The body releases adrenaline so you get these bursts of energy, its instant sometimes you will see people jump around shake their arms or pace right after crush some crazy amount of weight on a machine. I always thought that was them showing off but you really do need to release that energy I noticed i was shaking my arms or kicking my legs like a weirdo lol without even thinking about it.
38 double H... lucky, nice! Once you build up your back it is crazy its like nothing carrying around huge guns heeheehee
Last edited by Diamondonalandmine; 01-15-2014 at 09:11 PM.
You look fantastic! Congratulations! More people should venture into weight training, lots of women think they'll "bulk up", but it's just the opposite! Keep up the good work!
Wow you look TINY!! and much smaller than me!! Girl, I need to start looking into this weight training stuff.
Quick question-(this might be a stupid question) but when you weight train do you notice your legs getting bigger than arms or vice versa? I know people say you can't spot reduce, but then I always say people saying 'leg day" aren't they focusing on legs then?? and Do you stay proportional? (Assuming you're proportional to start with?) I feel like as I gained weight, I got top heavy and weight training might accentuate? Does that make any sense at all?
Quick question-(this might be a stupid question) but when you weight train do you notice your legs getting bigger than arms or vice versa? I know people say you can't spot reduce, but then I always say people saying 'leg day" aren't they focusing on legs then?? and Do you stay proportional? (Assuming you're proportional to start with?) I feel like as I gained weight, I got top heavy and weight training might accentuate? Does that make any sense at all?
Never a stupid question!! I hope you don't mind if I give an answer here. No, you cannot spot reduce. Example: overweight people doing 100 situps a day thinking they'll have a 6-pack in a month. They will never see their ab muscles if they still remain overweight. The 100 situps will burn calories and you'll lose fat, but not necessarily around your abs, i.e. spot-reducing.
You CAN spot TRAIN your muscles though, if you work hard on your abs, and once you have lost overall body fat to be at a healthy weight, you will be able to see a difference. Think of bodybuilders, they spot train (excessively), and you see them huge and ripped because they have such little fat on their bodies as a whole and they purposely choose which muscles to work on.
If you notice your legs (for example) seemingly bigger, it's likely because the muscles are shaping and growing, yet you haven't lost enough fat around the muscles to make them look lean, though I haven't really seen this in my own body, I can't deny it could happen to others.
If people say they have a "leg day", it likely means that for that specific day, they are focusing their weight training on their lower body, then the next day on their upper body...usually this is either to break up the length of the workout (say 1 hour each day as opposed to 2 hours 3x a week)...another benefit of this is that, if you're committed, you're usually doing weight training 6x a week (M-W-F lower body; T-TH-SA upper body), which means you're keeping your metabolism going more steadily, because working your muscles through weight training heightens the metabolism more than a cardio workout alone.
As for proportional, that would depend on where you store fat I suppose. Mine is stored in my chest and abs so even though my legs look great now, I still have flab on my abs and a big bustline.
I don't think any woman should be leery of weight training, the only way you will look bulky is if you eat too many calories and keep a layer of fat on your
body while actually lifting weights for the purpose of body building.
All of my information comes from over a decade of reading books written by various bodybuilders, fitness gurus and health experts. Also, from talking to wrestlers and martial artists (I was lucky through my job to have met a lot of them one year), also through personal experience.
Chardonnay, thanks for answering that I honestly could not have articulated that as well as you did thnx
Bulking up is not something that comes easily. I'd say do what you feel comfortable with and if something start to become a bit to pronounced for you, then adjust accordingly. My thighs sit differently now, they do bulge but that is what I am going for. I have always loved that look of rounded thick thighs. And WOW does my butt even pop out now my back is reforming so the arch is much more obvious. When I am standing, I can twerk each check individually just from engaging the muscles. lol this guy busted me doing it when I was grocery shopping his eye's popped out of his head haha!
I have always had an apple shape. But it is starting to reform. My stomach is no longer so big and round and enough fat has melted off that my hips are showing and an hour glass shape is starting to take shape. When I was verging on 300 my bust was not as pronounced as it is now. I have worked my back enough to straighten out my posture so standing up straight it makes me look like an inverted triangle, but I like that lol
When I was 21 I went from a size 18 down to a 12/13 from not eating and without muscle training and I had no butt just a long back, droopy thighs, straight up and down from any angle except my boobs where a FLOOPY d cup
Before muscle training when I lost weight with every step I could feel the vibrations from every step RIPPLE through my thighs up to my butt cheeks and up my almost liquefied back fat... and I could see it rippling in my shadows on the ground when I would walk
Now when I walk it does not ripple and my butt moves as a unit, if that makes sense!?!
The only thing I do not care for is... the hunger. I get soooo hungry. The body needs good food and protein to build and there is no way around it like an animal when I am hungry my dog runs and hides cause I'm like a beast I need food NOW! lol
Last edited by Diamondonalandmine; 01-18-2014 at 11:13 PM.
Never a stupid question!! I hope you don't mind if I give an answer here. No, you cannot spot reduce. Example: overweight people doing 100 situps a day thinking they'll have a 6-pack in a month. They will never see their ab muscles if they still remain overweight. The 100 situps will burn calories and you'll lose fat, but not necessarily around your abs, i.e. spot-reducing.
You CAN spot TRAIN your muscles though, if you work hard on your abs, and once you have lost overall body fat to be at a healthy weight, you will be able to see a difference. Think of bodybuilders, they spot train (excessively), and you see them huge and ripped because they have such little fat on their bodies as a whole and they purposely choose which muscles to work on.
If you notice your legs (for example) seemingly bigger, it's likely because the muscles are shaping and growing, yet you haven't lost enough fat around the muscles to make them look lean, though I haven't really seen this in my own body, I can't deny it could happen to others.
If people say they have a "leg day", it likely means that for that specific day, they are focusing their weight training on their lower body, then the next day on their upper body...usually this is either to break up the length of the workout (say 1 hour each day as opposed to 2 hours 3x a week)...another benefit of this is that, if you're committed, you're usually doing weight training 6x a week (M-W-F lower body; T-TH-SA upper body), which means you're keeping your metabolism going more steadily, because working your muscles through weight training heightens the metabolism more than a cardio workout alone.
As for proportional, that would depend on where you store fat I suppose. Mine is stored in my chest and abs so even though my legs look great now, I still have flab on my abs and a big bustline.
I don't think any woman should be leery of weight training, the only way you will look bulky is if you eat too many calories and keep a layer of fat on your
body while actually lifting weights for the purpose of body building.
All of my information comes from over a decade of reading books written by various bodybuilders, fitness gurus and health experts. Also, from talking to wrestlers and martial artists (I was lucky through my job to have met a lot of them one year), also through personal experience.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Diamondonalandmine
Chardonnay, thanks for answering that I honestly could not have articulated that as well as you did thnx
Bulking up is not something that comes easily. I'd say do what you feel comfortable with and if something start to become a bit to pronounced for you, then adjust accordingly. My thighs sit differently now, they do bulge but that is what I am going for. I have always loved that look of rounded thick thighs. And WOW does my butt even pop out now my back is reforming so the arch is much more obvious. When I am standing, I can twerk each check individually just from engaging the muscles. lol this guy busted me doing it when I was grocery shopping his eye's popped out of his head haha!
I have always had an apple shape. But it is starting to reform. My stomach is no longer so big and round and enough fat has melted off that my hips are showing and an hour glass shape is starting to take shape. When I was verging on 300 my bust was not as pronounced as it is now. I have worked my back enough to straighten out my posture so standing up straight it makes me look like an inverted triangle, but I like that lol
When I was 21 I went from a size 18 down to a 12/13 from not eating and without muscle training and I had no butt just a long back, droopy thighs, straight up and down from any angle except my boobs where a FLOOPY d cup
Before muscle training when I lost weight with every step I could feel the vibrations from every step RIPPLE through my thighs up to my butt cheeks and up my almost liquefied back fat... and I could see it rippling in my shadows on the ground when I would walk
Now when I walk it does not ripple and my butt moves as a unit, if that makes sense!?!
The only thing I do not care for is... the hunger. I get soooo hungry. The body needs good food and protein to build and there is no way around it like an animal when I am hungry my dog runs and hides cause I'm like a beast I need food NOW! lol
Thanks you guys!! I really appreciate the responses! and yes that makes a lot of sense! I am one those people that thinks I'll pick up a weight and suddenly "bulk up" really bad mindset, but then I see posts like these and then I think "I really need to get on the weight training bandwagon!!".
I guess I just want myself to have a proportional figure, and don't want to risk losing it (that is even if I have it-I've been overweight forever so I don't know) does that make sense? Can lose weight by just walking or something? I feel like exercise makes me SO hungry, and I want to eat back all my calories plus some, but I feel a lot better after doing it, it's always such a battle with exercising.
Is there a calorie limit you could suggest for someone like me? I'm actually 175 right now (I was 169 before holidays and refuse to change my ticker lol) I'm always stalling, giving up, restarting stalling. I'm not having the luck I had when I originally lost weight (that's why I come on to goal posts for inspiration and a reality check that it doesn't happen overnight!!)
Anyway, sorry for the novel!! I will def look into what I can handle with some weights I have, what are your opinions on 30 day shred??
Thanks you guys!! I really appreciate the responses! and yes that makes a lot of sense! I am one those people that thinks I'll pick up a weight and suddenly "bulk up" really bad mindset, but then I see posts like these and then I think "I really need to get on the weight training bandwagon!!".
I guess I just want myself to have a proportional figure, and don't want to risk losing it (that is even if I have it-I've been overweight forever so I don't know) does that make sense? Can lose weight by just walking or something? I feel like exercise makes me SO hungry, and I want to eat back all my calories plus some, but I feel a lot better after doing it, it's always such a battle with exercising.
Is there a calorie limit you could suggest for someone like me? I'm actually 175 right now (I was 169 before holidays and refuse to change my ticker lol) I'm always stalling, giving up, restarting stalling. I'm not having the luck I had when I originally lost weight (that's why I come on to goal posts for inspiration and a reality check that it doesn't happen overnight!!)
Anyway, sorry for the novel!! I will def look into what I can handle with some weights I have, what are your opinions on 30 day shred??
When I get back from the gym I'm STARVING. But I eat yogurt, oatmeal and an apple usually. It's about 325 calories and it really fills me up, I personally eat between 1700 and 2000 calories a day currently, but some of that is wine calories (I always make room for my wine! ). I don't believe in starving myself at all, I find that I get injured more and have no energy or motivation. As long as I exercise well, and keep up the weight training, I lose weight.
I think you can lose weight by walking, but you'd have to walk a lot and be committed while cutting down your food calories. I think you should do some research about how many calories to eat and learn about how many calories you burn during exercise. There is a website called primusweb fitness partner, if you put in your weight and the time spent, it'll come up with a list of activities and how much you will burn.
Chardonnay, thanks for answering that I honestly could not have articulated that as well as you did thnx
Bulking up is not something that comes easily. I'd say do what you feel comfortable with and if something start to become a bit to pronounced for you, then adjust accordingly. My thighs sit differently now, they do bulge but that is what I am going for. I have always loved that look of rounded thick thighs. And WOW does my butt even pop out now my back is reforming so the arch is much more obvious. When I am standing, I can twerk each check individually just from engaging the muscles. lol this guy busted me doing it when I was grocery shopping his eye's popped out of his head haha!
I have always had an apple shape. But it is starting to reform. My stomach is no longer so big and round and enough fat has melted off that my hips are showing and an hour glass shape is starting to take shape. When I was verging on 300 my bust was not as pronounced as it is now. I have worked my back enough to straighten out my posture so standing up straight it makes me look like an inverted triangle, but I like that lol
When I was 21 I went from a size 18 down to a 12/13 from not eating and without muscle training and I had no butt just a long back, droopy thighs, straight up and down from any angle except my boobs where a FLOOPY d cup
Before muscle training when I lost weight with every step I could feel the vibrations from every step RIPPLE through my thighs up to my butt cheeks and up my almost liquefied back fat... and I could see it rippling in my shadows on the ground when I would walk
Now when I walk it does not ripple and my butt moves as a unit, if that makes sense!?!
The only thing I do not care for is... the hunger. I get soooo hungry. The body needs good food and protein to build and there is no way around it like an animal when I am hungry my dog runs and hides cause I'm like a beast I need food NOW! lol
Oh you're welcome! I get excited about weight training, and it's frustrating that the media has women thinking that if they lift weights, they'll somehow be "bulking up". I'm glad to know that your butt moves as a unit and not one ripple anymore lol! Keep up the good work!
Last edited by Chardonnay; 01-19-2014 at 04:12 PM.
You look fantastic! Congratulations! Lots of good information here, also. I've begun weight training in the last few months and LOVE it! I do tabata drills in a class at my gym, and I'm amazed that I can lift more than some of the other girls. It's such a good feeling to get stronger!
I started because I wanted to decrease the size of my upper arms. I'm a pear shape, and thus have big thighs and arms. Guess what? It's working! So, don't think you'll bulk up automatically. I'm actually slimming down in a lot of areas, but most noticeably my arms. I didn't measure - didn't want to know exactly how BIG they were, but I can wear shirts that had tight sleeves just a few months ago. My arms have definitely reduced.
And, I second the tightening of the booty! I'm just beginning a running program, and the dreaded "jiggle" was my main reason for not starting sooner in my weight loss journey. Since weight training, it doesn't seem to be so much of an issue... not enough to hold me back, anyway.
I could've lived my whole life and never lifted a free weight -- so glad I just gave it a shot!
Umm I came to this site in 2011 at 296.4 or was it 294.6!?! Verging on 300 anyways. Desperate to one day get smaller but having little faith in it ever happening. When I was bored, lonely or anxious I ate than I realized that certain types of stress helped me lose weight soooo there IS a silver lining to being stressed out, for me anyways
I just broke into the twenty teens and I am so happy. I have been muscle training for a few months now. I know I could put more effort into it but I am happy with the results so far
On the left is me in the 290's :'( on the right that's where I am at now (216 lbs) I have been working hard on my posture and my back it straightening out love it
You look amazing! You know, it is kind of funny because even though I did not suffer anorexia nervosa, I did lose weight due to stress a long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away, LOL). I had lost appetite for many carbs I used to consume (mostly from starches), and I worked out like crazy at the gym and walked a lot. It was just a healthy, active lifestyle. Whatever happened to that!? Ah, yeah, I got married and had kids. My husband is loving enough to remind me that I look awesome after two kids but I beg to differ and that's why I'm here. Anyway... I'm rambling. You look great! Such an inspiration. Keep up the good work!
but some of that is wine calories (I always make room for my wine! ).
LOL Same! It's funny I used to HATE red wine. Until I tried one I fell in love with!
Thanks everyone for the encouraging words. Often I find myself remembering how it was starting the track how overwhelming it was. I hope no one misinterprets this thread as gloating or being self righteous. I genuinely want to inspire others. I remember in 2011 when I started on this site and seeing all the amazing Before & afters and being so excited about seeing some change in myself. It took some time before I actually started the journey but it has been more then worth every missed poutine (canadian here lol) and every last drop of sweat.
@Awshucks Isn't it crazy how much it becomes something you love!? Before I did "the gym thing" I used to cringe at the idea of sweating and exhausting myself at the gym. Now I get excited when "gym time" is getting close. Catch myself migrating to the workout gear when I am shopping. Making mental notes of jogging paths in my city. The thought of hiking(I am near mountains) sounds exciting to me. When I am anxious I don't want to binge as much I want to run or burn the energy off with my legs some how.
Oh and the dreaded "D word" Depression!? It has been months since the dragon snuck up on me. I mean the hard core depression. Not "I ate some cake now I am sad" I mean the quite dark place no one knows about. Detach from everyone everything around you no tears, no emotions, just dark... quite nothing, every hour a life time waiting to the light to break. Ya that Sh*t, GONE!!!
Thinking back what got me really going was emotion. Anger, that'll put some giddy up in ya lol! Funnel whatever emotion drives you the most and just think, this time next year... MIND BLOWN!!!
*sorry for the "emo" moment but i think those having genuinely experienced the same thing, will understand the severity of.. it*
Last edited by Diamondonalandmine; 01-21-2014 at 03:34 PM.
Yeah, you must account for at least a poutine a month, it's unheard of otherwise . I don't think you're bragging at all. I think that success stories do inspire others. I know I got inspired back in the day when the idea of a 90-100 pound weight loss seemed impossible to me.
Wow you look great.
I started strength training last year. I don't see any difference in me but I like the way it makes me feel. I feel stronger and I stand taller. I go to the Y and do the circuit training I love it
lol 
Well done! Keep it up!
soooo there IS a silver lining to being stressed out, for me anyways 
