sumire When are you gonna post a picture of your arms for us all to see?

I am looking to add a lot more to my lifting routine. Will spend the better part of today doing research that I can use tonight at the gym.

Definitely not 'til my rest week is over and I can start lifting & getting a pump again. Maybe not 'til I drop just a smidge more fat. I have 10 workouts left to go in this program, and then I'm going to drop just a little bit of weight. I want more muscle definition, goshdarnit.

Hope you had fun researching/working out! I love adding new stuff to my workouts!

You are! haha I hate being sore!

Another thing you can do is just try changing some of your training techniques. Do you ever incorporate 21's, Drop Sets, Supersets/Giant Sets, etc. into your workouts? My arms have gotten SHREDDED since I started incorporating 21's and drop sets. Holy cow!

Since this is like the only place I can bragg about new gym accomplishments... bear with me! I did weighted pullups for the first time today! It wasn't anything spectacular, but I held a 10 pound medicine ball with my feet and then did 4 pullups, and then a set of 3 chinups. Not amazing, but not too bad either!

Awesome!!

Ladies I had the strangest NSV the other day. I went out to eat with my fiance and we went to this pizza joint (This place is awesome; they're one of the few that make amazing tasting whole wheat pizza). I ran into the bathroom and was too lazy to do my business after putting toilet paper on the seat.

I started laughing!! It is so easy to squat over a toilet now!! I remember never doing it because I would get tired after a few seconds.

So I guess all of those squats I do at the gym are paying off

I have to ask; what is "NSV"? I keep seeing that and I'm not sure what it means.

Your story made me LOL though! See, squats don't just burn calories and give you shapely buns and legs, they're functional too!

NSV = Non-scale victory!

I've been taking regular pictures of myself so I can see progress. I wish I did this wayyyyy earlier, but what's done is done.

This one I took a few days ago...I still can't believe it's ME in it. Blocking out my face because I am just in a sports bra.

And thus I am convinced that lifting is the most awesome thing in the world

Now if that loose skin would just shrink up...

BUFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You look amazing.

I incorporated a superset into my upper body workout yesterday and graduated to 80 lbs on the lat pull down machine.

I am nowhere near as buff as you guys but I am soooo pleased with what lifting has done for my figure.

LOL I LOVE your picture Krampus... the sunglasses make it. Congrats on the new lifts!

I'm pretty sure that it is.

UGGHHH I pulled something in my neck/shoulder today. I was doing 60 lb on the bench press machine - nothing I havent done before - when I felt an almost "popping" pain in my shoulder followed by neck pain similar to when you sleep on your neck wrong and it hurts all day.

Uh oh, no bueno! Did you get an ice pack on it and take some kind of anti-inflamatory medicine? Just rest it and treat it as best you can, and see how it feels in a few days. In the meantime, limit your workouts to lower body and machines that don't strain your neck.

Yes and yes. That's my action plan - not pushing it to get worse. It's unpleasant for now but not unbearable. Probably just a pinched nerve or something?