Hi all!!!! NUMBER TWENTY ONE!!!

Whoo whoo!!! Congrats to another BFLer, Marci, finishing up a challenge.

Finishing a challenge is definitely an accomplishment!!! Congratulations to you Marci. I bought a stability ball and it helped a lot in C1. Crunches are GREAT on it as well as some of the LBW exercises. I also love Tae Bo. I use it as an alternative to the Elliptical.

Well, due to the inspiration of all of you, especially MrsJim, I believe that I am ready to stop gearing up and to hit the Challenge level of fitness tomorrow. Meaning that TOMORROW I am officially starting Challenge 2. I have started it two or three times and I really want this one to go all the way!!!!!!!!!! Like I did when I quit smoking for good, I wasn't going to announce it until I'm really ready. Today I took the dog for a long walk, went to the gym and cooked food for the week. I think it's time. I am going to be walking my daughter to school in the mornings from now on. Although it's not intense exercise, I believe that the first thing in the morning walk will motivate me for the day. It's done it before!!! I will do cardio after the walk 3 days a week and weight training 2 days. I'm not taking a free day but I won't be working out on Saturdays. So I'm ready. And away we go...................

Also, my hormones are starting to take the weight off around the middle but putting it back on my hips!! Estrogen deficiency usually leads to spare tire city but putting it back will turn your fat back to the hips where it's used to going in the female body. So that little development (or big development!) has helped me to get really serious. I've been doing 2 weeks of BFL workouts but not journalling as I did in c1 or really keeping tabs on the intensity and duration. So now we're back to the book. Yeah!

Susan

Marci-Congratulations on finishing your first challenge!

SJ-Good for you! I am just not motivated enough yet to try for C2. I thought I was, but totally sluffed off with workouts and eating. Now I am paying for it. However, I am still using my smith, and I have starting walking. I went 3 miles Saturday, and 5 miles Sunday. I can really feel it in my thighs, whereas I don't when I jog. Isn't that wierd? I think I am able to pay more attention to the way I hold myself when I walk. When jogging, I can't concentrate on keeping my thighs tight and my stomach in! I wish I was motivated enough to start C2 today with you, but I'm still not ready. I have been into the sugar, and I think I want to wait until after Halloween to start doing something. By the way, I tried some low carb pasta, and it is pretty good. The price is high, though--$4.99 for spaghetti pasta.

Talk to ya later!

I've been walking for exercise for years so judging my intensity levels (I'm outside, not on the treadmill) is easy. My 10s are a slow jog. I normally do about 4 mph on my walks, with bursts of racewalking or doing steep hills for interval training. And I do that for an hour. But now those 20 minutes finish me off.

Congratulations to those starting new challenges, and definitely to our latest member to complete her first.

Susanje - CONGRATS on starting C2! I'm not quite at the menopausal stage yet but my mom went through it a few years back. It really messes up your system doesn't it? Keep posting here and at L&S with your progress - I know you can do it!

I just got back from the gym for my first C3/Pam B style workout. Today I did chest/triceps (including a superset of lying DB extensions and bench dips - OW OW OW) followed up by a 20 minute cardio HIIT session. The way I'm doing each bodypart is 3 sets of 15 of three exercises, with 15-30 seconds rest in between. The session goes pretty quickly but it really wears me out - especially the 20 minute HIIT. I am only going to do HIIT for three weeks - then switch back to the 20 MAS for three weeks, then back to HIIT and so on.

Here's my C3/CPB training schedule:

Monday: Chest and Triceps & Cardio
Tuesday: Quads and Hams
Wednesday: Back and Biceps & Cardio
Thursday: Shoulders, Abs, and Calves
Friday: Chest and Triceps & Cardio
Saturday: Quads and Hams
Sunday : Rest
Monday: Back and Biceps & Cardio
Tuesday: Shoulders, Abs, and Calves
Wednesday: Chest and Triceps & Cardio
Thursday: Quads and Hams
Friday: Back and Biceps & Cardio
Saturday: Shoulders, Abs, and Calves
Sunday: Rest
Repeat

In addition, I've had Jeremy of Peak Physiques (he posts often on L&S - very informative!) do a 12-week nutrition program for me. Very similar to BFL in that I still eat 6 meals a day, but there are some significant differences. I'll keep you all posted on how that goes! I feel confident now that by January 14th I'll be at my bodyfat goal of 14% or less! Bring it on!!!

Hi all!!!!


Hi MrsJim,

When I was finishing up C1 I added HIIT to the end of my UBW. I started at 4 minutes and had gotten up to 7 minutes doing 30 seconds of the highest intensity I could muster. It peeled some inches off in the last few weeks. I am definitely going to do that again at some point. In fact, I was thinking about it yesterday when I was at the gym so I may incorporate it soon. I've heard that it burns off the lactic acid that builds up in weight training and really is very good for your muscles.

PLEASE keep posting your workouts!!! I love to hear them! I'm going to do BFL by the book for the first few weeks but then I'd like to change, add, a bit.

I have heard that menopause is not quite as horrible as perimenopause which I have been in for 10 years. I started in my early 30s!!!!

I quit smoking in the middle of this nuttiness (4 years ago) trying to make it better and gained 50 lbs and that has been the bane of my existence ever since. Trying to find some hormonal balance and the shifting metabolism brought on by quitting and turning 40. In perimenopause your hormones shift all over the place so a daily dose of the same meds every day can work for a while and then it can kick your estrogen making capabilities back into gear and you can suddenly have estrogen excess and the symptoms are unpleasant (which is what just happened to me the past few weeks). Go off the hormones and your estrogen may level off and you'll be okay and then it will plummet. Too little estrogen is unpleasant as well. So I've been fighting to find the right balance (very elusive at this time). ACK.

I bought the book The Menopause Diet and she backs up what my dr says about carb sensitivity and women over 40 so I thought I'd try it.

The carb reduction is for naught without exercise. My metabolism is so slow that I truly need to exercise at intense levels almost every day. I think I am doing the walking first thing for the psychological effect. Starting my day off with a walk, even if it's not that challenging, gives me a foundation for the whole day. Then I can do my more intense exercises later on.

Shelley, I had to be ready for C2 because it's a commitment and I was so disappointed when I faltered the few times I started and didn't make it very far. This time I am ready. When you're ready, you're ready!!! Last night I went through the transformation gallery on L&S for some inspiration. I am determined to look at it every few days! Hang in there, you'll be ready!

Off for my walk.

Susan

Hi everyone!

After giving some free day advice to KDN (hope you're doing great), I went and ate horribly on my free day yesterday
Even had ice cream, which is a former favorite that I had previously passed on because Myoplex Lite does such a good job of satisfying the "cold, sweet and creamy" cravings. Along with the other rich food I ate, it made me feel awful last night and this morning.

I didn't feel guilty or like giving up (one of the benefits of it being free), but I did feel stupid for making my LBWO harder. Luckily my husband does BFL with me, and pushed me to go for those 10s.

It's hard to believe we're already in week 10 of challenge 1. Thanks to everyone here, and have a great evening!

Carrie

Carrie - don't sweat overeating on Free Day. I mean, if you're GONNA overeat on BFL, make sure that you do it on Free Day! I've done that many times myself, esp. during my first Challenge. Of course, I would pay for it the next day - by feeling totally nauseated. On Free Day it would not be at all unusual for me to buy a pint of Ben & Jerry's and munch on it all day...now if I want ice cream on a Free Day, I usually head over to McDonald's and buy a 99 cent cone. Jim and I also used to go out for a HUGE breakfast every Sunday (my Free Day) but we've stopped doing that - now we just have cereal (treat enough!).

Okay, gals, I did quads and hams today. My legs are still trembling even as I write this!! Not to mention I'm feeling yesterday's chest/tri workout (especially the tris).

Today's workout:

Sumo-Style Smith machine Squats:
15x70, 15x100, 15x130

Superset: 1-leg Smith squats + leg press:
15x20/15x180, 15x30/15x270, 15x35/15x360

(those one-legged squats are KILLERS! Total 10's all the way!)

Good Mornings:
15x20, 15x50, 15x80

Lunges on Smith:
15x80, 15x95, 15x100

Leg Curls:
15x50, 12x70, 15x60 (you can see I couldn't get more than 12 on the second set)

I predict tomorrow I'll be walking like Walter Brennan in those old Westerns. So long, pardners!

I am going to do the Body For Life program. I just called a health food store and was told the Myoplex cost over $60 for just 20 drinks! Is there anything cheaper that any of you can recommend? Help!

p.s. my hubby is going to do this too and over $480 a month for Myoplex is waaaayyyy beyond what I can afford.

Michele

Welcome!

You may want to check our previous BFL threads for lots of helpful info...

First off, you **DON'T** need to use Myoplex (actually if you're looking to lose bodyfat, you should go with the Myoplex Lite - which is cheaper than the regular Myoplex BTW!) or any meal replacement shake for that matter! It's just there as a convenience...

GNC, your local gym pro shop, and health food stores are probably some of the most expensive places to buy MRP (Meal Replacement Products). There are much cheaper places around the Net. I usually buy mine from www.vitaglo.com or www.netrition.com (accessed through www.leanandstrong.com).

Many of the regulars at the Lean & Strong board don't even use MRPs unless they have to - many who do don't use Myoplex (I happen to **LOVE** the taste of Myo Lite so I choose to use it!). You can use a protein powder such as Simply Protein or Designer Protein which is significantly cheaper than Myoplex - but you will need to add a carb with it. In case you didn't pick it up through reading the book, the key to BFL's eating plan is having a portion of protein and a portion of carbs at every meal (using palm/fist measurements). One of my coworkers was asking me about BFL yesterday and wanted to know if Slim-Fast was okay to use. Sorry, but it won't work since Slim-Fast is mostly sugar. (check www.hussman.com/eas for more info on how BFL works). If you buy an MRP other than Myoplex, make sure that the sugar is very low (Myo Lite has 2 grams of sugar) and that the protein/carb ratio is similar. (you can look up nutrition info at the Netrition site).

Again, I suggest that you check the previous BFL threads here for lots more information! See ya later!

I usually spend about $75 a month on Myoplex Lite - I buy a 42-serving Variety Pack and a 20-serving Cappuchino Lite (YUM!) box from www.vitaglo.com. Just thought I'd let ya know! I average 2 a day plus my husband has one in the morning during the week.

Update - I just thought about this and my numbers are a bit off, but not by much!

I use 12 packets of Myo Lite during the week (2/day except Sunday which is my free day) + Jim uses 5/week (one each weekday morning) = 17 servings/week.

This comes up to around 74 packets/month.

Vitaglo sells the 42-packet Variety Pack of Myo Lite for $49 (free shipping within the US). Price per serving = $1.16. So my calculations were off a bit - I should've said my monthly price for Myo Lite is $85.84/month or $1,030.08 per year.

Now, if you were buying the regular Myoplex, you could get the 42-serving box for $58 from Vitaglo which equals $1.38 a serving.

If that's too expensive, you can use Simply Protein (mix it with nonfat milk or add a banana for your carb portion). A five-pound 80 serving tub costs $26, or 32 cents a serving!

So you see, as long as you shop around BFL is NOT expensive (a complaint I hear frequently from people who have looked into it). As far as supplements, you don't need to use them either. I know Bill Phillips mentions CytoVol in the book. Instead of spending the big money on that, any kind of generic creatine and glutamine will do. Very cheap - I bought a big tub of Labrada Glutamine for around $45 a few months back and I'm STILL using it! And again, other than a multivitamin, you DON'T need to buy supplements as long as you're eating lots of clean foods and veggies! Whew! Hope that helps out.

Michele - another aside.

http://members.tripod.com/bflbob/id20.htm

The above link is an EAS Price finder....

It sounds like the store you called was quoting you the price for the Myoplex Deluxe, which is the most expensive of the Myoplex products. It also has more calories, and is geared more towards building muscle rather than fat loss.

Of course, the stores **WANT** you to buy the more expensive products, right?

If you're gearing more towards fat loss along with building muscle, go with the Myo Lite. If you feel hubby needs more protein and calories, you can add a scoop of protein powder to his Myo Lite, which as I noted above is only .32 a serving.

I was at my gym a couple of weeks ago, which has a pro shop that sells supplements and clothes, and one lady was there in tears because the sales counselor talked her into buying the Deluxe. Since she obviously had some bodyfat to lose, I told her she needed to buy the Lite version which is cheaper, and gave her the Vitaglo website address so she could save some $$. She was so angry that the guy talked her into buying the more expensive product!

I don't want you all to give up on BFL because of the perception that it is expensive. It really doesn't have to be - otherwise I wouldn't be doing it - a millionaire I'm not!

Thank you MrsJim for the calculations. I figured it up in C1 and every Mylo meal cost me between $1.50 and $2 depending on where I bought it....like you I shopped all the netstores and went for the bargains. To me, a meal for $1.50 is not a bad price.

I really don't like the higher protein drinks. I miss the Mylo....

However today someone in school asked me if I'm losing weight so I guess something is working.

loving my morning walks too!!!

In other news:
I go to NYC for a job interview next week. First time I will be back home since the end of July. I have some grieving to do but it will happen after the interview.

I plan to take a day and walk around downtown. My interview is about 2 blocks from the WTC and I'll interview all morning and then go walk around and leave sometime the next afternoon. Home sweet home. I am dreading it and looking forward to it at the same time.

sigh
Susan

SJ- Good luck on your interview! Let us know how it turns out. Doesn't it feel great when someone notices your weight loss??

I'll keep my fingers (mentally) crossed for you (keeping them literally crossed makes it hard to use my PC ).

Sorry that I got a bit long-winded with my calculations. I have a tendency to go into intricate detail - esp where BFL is concerned!

Like you, SJ, I figure that $2 or less for a meal is actually a pretty good deal, given the fact that Jim and I eat out a lot (nothing fancy usually though). I can't STAND frozen dinners such as Lean Cuisine - I hated them before and I couldn't imagine eating them now on BFL, with all that sodium! I'm so used to my fresh foods, and it doesn't take long at all to make a "BFL dinner" - I can whip up chicken breasts w/Rotel & veggies, with a side of cous-cous in about 15 minutes or so. BTW, cous-cous is a GREAT carb - Trader Joes' sells a whole-wheat version - it takes like five minutes to make (I use low-sodium chicken broth instead of water).

Today's workout - I did Back/Biceps and 20 HIIT Cardio:

Seated Cable Row - 15x40, 15x60, 15x80

Superset: Pulldowns/1-arm cable rows
15x60/25, 15x80/35, 15x90/35

Lying Upper Cable Curls w/rope (lying on a flat bench - got this from the premier issue of Energy for Women) - 15x25, 15x35, 15x50

Upper Cable Curls - 15x25, 15x35, 15x40

Preacher Curls (weight does not include EZ Bar) - 15x10, 15x20, 15x20

Since I'm only taking 15 or 30 second rests in between sets I am not using as much weight as I did in the last Challenge. My workout goes much more quickly - I was done in about 30 minutes (not counting the cardio session).

Time to hit the shower before Jim wakes up! See ya!

Hey you guys - you've been pretty quiet lately!

Today I woke up with LOTS of energy - so I had a really great workout - today's set was Shoulders/Abs/Calves:

Smith Military Press (weight does not include bar): 15x10, 15x10, 15x15

Arnold Press - 15x10, 15x12, 15x15

1-arm Cable cross (lats): 15x20, 15x20, 15x25

(I was hitting 10's on all these sets for shoulders - with only 15-30 seconds of rest between sets - not a long time for recovery. Whew!!)

Floor Crunches - 3 sets of 15
Twist Crunches - 3 sets of 15 (each side)
Bent-Knee Leg Raises - 3 sets of 15

(Jeremy at L&S had some great tips for increasing intensity on ab workouts - specifically by doing stomach vacumns (trying to touch your belly button to your spine) and Kegels during the movement - and not letting your head/shoulders touch the ground at the end of the movement. It really works!)

Leg Press Calf Extensions - 15x180, 15x270, 15x360

Superset - Standing Calf Press/1-leg calf press - 15x240/160, 15x240/160, 15x260/180.

Total workout time - 37 minutes.

Tomorrow I begin the circuit again with Chest/Triceps/Cardio...

How is everyone else doing??